SHRINE (ENGLISH VER)
by Miss28
Summary: With her earphones on and melodies filling her ears, the girl looked at the ceiling, thinking. She, Iki Hiyori, a regular schoolgirl, had jumped at the street to save the life of a promising rock star. (THIS STORY IS THE ENGLISH VERSION OF THE ORIGINAL ONE IN SPANISH) NORAGAMI AND ALL ITS CHARACTERS ARE PROPERTY OF ADACHITOKA. Music au
1. There's a light that never goes out

_This is also entitled as my already existing work, but I translated it to english. Since it's not my native tongue, please tell me if you find something weird going on. I hope you enjoy._

 **TRACK 1**

 **There's a light that never goes out - The Smiths**

"Ue-sama", read out loud one of the highschoolers standing in front of a sign made in childish handwriting, with the picture of a cute lost kitten, "some people sure have a really weird taste on pet names".

"C'mon, Yama-chan!" scoffed another girl with middle straight hair and glasses, "you can't really talk about weird names, you name your dog after Zenny's singer!"

"What is wrong with you, Ami-chan!?" retorted the first girl, tall with short, light brown hair, "Zenny's are like gods!"

"Of course not! Hyakkyakou are the ones that are godlike!"

"What do you think, Hiyori-chan?!" asked both girls to the third one, still lingering in how sad was the fact that such a small kitty went lost. When she looked at her friends, the magenta hue in her eyes told them that she really wasn't paying the slightest attention to what they were saying.

"I… think Ue-sama is a really pretty name" Hiyori doubted, shifting her scarf over her neck and freeing some tresses of hair from underneath it. Ami and Yama let out a resignation huff.

"Hiyori-chan is always in her own little world, isn't she?" laughed Ami.

"Sorry, Hiyori, it was actually our fault to make such a stupid question" added Yama, with a bit of embarrasement. Hiyori kept looking at them with wide eyes, completely lost. The three girls kept walking.

It was a cold day at the end of autumn. The kind of cloudy day in which you would usually expect snow at any moment. Hiyori looked from behind to both her friends. They were really close since middle school, but lately, however, she felt like with each passing day she was falling behind. Like today, for example, she was incapable of understanding the subject they were talking about completely, and it happened more frequently than before. Ami and Yama helped in what they could but sometimes it was certainly too hard to explain the backstory of absolutely everything they said. Hiyori, after all, since always had been a special child. And even when at first things went out smoothly for her, lately she was beginning to realize being special was making everything way more complicated day by day after.

She was the kind of girl who never had to struggle for anything at all. Her father was the headmaster of the Iki's general hospital, her family hospital, and having only one older brother that apparently was destined to follow the steps of all men in her family, Hiyori was never involved in the usually serious conversation about what did she wanted to become as an adult. And instead, her mother was determined to have her educated as a perfect little role model of a nice family girl.

Since then, Hiyori basically had no time for distractions. Ikebana, traditional dance, ballet, piano lessons, painting lessons. Every activity it was considered great for a good girl to have knowledge in, her mother listed her, and was her guide even when she did had time to spare, deciding even over TV programs she could see.

"Hiyori-chan? Hi-yo-ri-chan!"

"Huh? Oh! I'm sorry Ami-chan! I got a little distracted, sorry, what were you saying?"

Ami and Yama laughed again. "You're kind of a sleepwalker, don't you?" teased Ami-chan.

"We were just asking if it was possible for you to make us a space in that clumped agenda of yours to go shopping after school" helped Yama.

"Shopping huh?"

"You know" said Ami, "go to the mall, try ridiculous clothes on, maybe eat some ice cream, the usual normal human girl stuff"

Hiyori smiled, a little bit ashamed but also somewhat hurt. "Next Tuesday my Ikebana class is going to cancel, so I can ask mother if I can go out with you guys"

Both her friends smiled and did a little dance while continuing with their way. Yama insisted on the subject: "But seriously, Hiyori-chan, don't you think your routine is way too… stiff?"

"I don't know what you mean, Yama-chan" Hiyori answered plainly, "I have enough time left to study, do the assignments and sleep fairly well".

Yama laughed a bit. "I mean time to relax, to rest, to hang out with us…"

"Or without us!" interrupted Ami-chan with amusement.

"Yeah, yeah! I mean, you're sixteen, Hiyori, and you're not even allowed to watch TV by yourself".

"W-well that's… Uhm…" blabbed Hiyori without any actual argument against them.

"At school you don't get distracted, not even a little" added Ami, in the middle between joking and worried, "Is there even anyone you like? I mean in real life, obviously, because Jared Padalecki doesn't count."

"But I told you that's not true!" Hiyori squealed.

"Nobody looks at the screen the way you do when he's in it! Imagine what your mother would say if she finds out you come to my house to study with Netflix full volume on my living room!"

"My daughter is getting mundane hobbies!" Yama cried, trying to fake Hiyori's mother's voice.

"This is such a disgrace to our family!" followed Ami in the same mood.

"Now stop it! You kinda do sound just like her and this is getting too weird!"

The three girls laughed and kept walking.

"So, Hiyori?" Yama insisted "is there anyone you do like?"

"Hummm…" said Hiyori, thoughtfully, making a genuine effort, "let me think…"

She gave up after a couple minutes. In fact, she didn't even knew how it should felt liking someone, just as she had never went out shopping with her friends or considered she would become a fan of a ghosts and action TV show. "I think there's… actually no one I like…"

"Look Yama-chan!"

"Waaah! How cute!"

Hiyori let her friends to go off to the front of a store that was full with Gudetama merchandise. She honestly had never realized that somehow the world around her seemed kind of off, somewhat foggy and distant, separated of her for a thin veil that even if it wasn't entirely her fault, it wasn't fair to blame on her parents either. In a practical way, Hiyori was a well-taken-care-of child, and compared to others, her family was a very loving one. Square, yes, but she always had her place on it. The world outside, on the contrary, Hiyori felt as if you needed to win the place to belong with somehow. Was it too much to ask to just be yourself? If she could she would keep being exactly the way she was being up until now… but again, how was it?

Blue.

Staring at nothing, Hiyori's eyes crashed with a sharp, almost electric blue gaze. That visual contact made her shiver for an instant, and then she assimilated the rest of the face; fair skin, thin eyebrows, frozen in an indifferent expression, arrogant cheekbones and thin lips that barely shifted to the sudden encounter. After a few seconds, Hiyori felt as if a jinx casted upon her faded as the guy finished wiping his sunglasses in his white t-shirt and place them back at his face, keeping forward. Hiyori then followed him with her sight. Her mother will surely disapprove the length of his hair, that was about two inches longer than her brother's hair. A guitar case hanged on his shoulder, and seemed heavy due to the guy continuously shifting the strap with one hand. The bad guy look, the arms covered in tattoos.

"Hiyori-chan, what are you doing? Let's go!"

"Hey, wait for me!"

He sighed, shifting again the strap of his guitar on his shoulder. He took his sunglasses off and cleaned them again on his t-shirt in a compulsory gesture. He pushed the traffic light button, it was taking so long that was starting to drive him insane, specially after an encounter like that. He wondered if that girl had recognized him, and at the same time he scolded himself for standing there staring at her like an idiot during that much time, what the hell was he thinking? If that damn old geezer knew where he was, he will be in serious trouble. "And there I had to stay standing still like the goddamn asshole I am… WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH THIS THING?". He kept pushing frantically the traffic light button to make it go faster.

The little man in the traffic light finally changed position and got lit with green. The guy held the strap of his guitar case tightly before practically sprinting over the zebra crossing, unaware, submerged in his own thoughts as he was, that a shiny black audi was coming close to the traffic light at full speed.

In a few seconds the whole scene was a complete chaos. The driver barely had time to hit the brake when his attention went back to the road instead of changing songs in his stereo. The sound of tires screeching and the white smoke smelling like burnt rubber confused the guy that, after a hard push at the small of his back was safe and sound with no more than a few scratches on the other side of the street.

"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?! YOU COULD HAVE DIED!" squealed a faint voice beside him. Surprisingly, not knowing exactly what had just happened, he was in front of the magenta eyes from minutes ago.

"Huh…"

"THE DRIVER IS TRULY… A DUMMY!"

 _Dummy_? The guy couldn't avoid laughing a little.

"W-well, I think you should be more worried about yourself…"

"…huh?" blinked Hiyori, totally confused. A dense hot liquid made its way down her forehead, and all of a sudden all she could see was piercing blue, engulfing her whole, taking her to a nice warm and cozy place that a voice wanted to get her out no matter what.

"Hiyori!"

Her eyelids couldn't move, but that voice was so familiar…

"Hiyori, dear, wake up, please!"

"M-mother…" Hiyori thought, and suddenly again the world around her seemed to materialize.

White.

A constant pressure in her head was about to become painful. Reaching her hand up she found a thick bandage, and from the white fog around her a few familiar and worried faces became clear. Her mother, her father and her two friends were around her bed, taking care of her at her hospital room. Upon the girl's response, all four of them sighed in relief, and then smiled.

"Dear, are you okay? Can you hear me?"

"Hiyori-chan, we were so worried!" cried Ami, hugging Yama.

"Yeah, that sure was a though hit!" said Yama jokingly, trying solve the tension a bit.

"Easy now, let her come to her senses" said her father, approaching her bed with a calm gesture and getting his stethoscope to his ears, "let's check upon you, princess"  
Hiyori looked at everyone with cherish while her father proceeded with the examination. He concluded she was okay, apart from a few scratches and bumps that needed to be checked further with a CT scan.

"And now, honey, tell us" asked her mother, severely, "what happened?"

Hiyori tried to remember exactly what she saw.

"…the light was green for the pedestrian light… and then I heard an engine… the car was coming so fast that he would be certainly run over some…" after a little more effort, Hiyori got a flash memory of the guy with a guitar, "there was someone else!"

After the sudden change, the stares of concern made her rephrase her question.

"What happened to the guy that was with me?"

Ami and Yama exchanged a worried stare. Ami spoke: "Hiyori-chan… we couldn't see anything… the smoke from the tires kept us from seeing exactly what happened but…"

"When we reach to the other side of the car you had fainted already" Yama explained, "you were bleeding at your forehead and somebody had already called for an ambulance, but there was no one else with you."

Hiyori was growing more and more confused. "But you should have seen him! He was… he had…". To Hiyori, try to remind something beyond the blue shade she saw, made her dizzy and got her a strong piercing pain to her head. She took both hands to her head and lied down, exhausted. Her mother arranged her pillows.

"Easy, dear, try to rest a bit. As you recover from your injuries I'm sure you will be able to remember more about it" advised Mr. Iki, "take all the time you need, I will arrange to keep you monitored as long as possible, so relax and focus in recovering". He nudged her forehead lovingly and stepped out of her room with quick pace, and Hiyori felt a comfortable darkness swallowing her again. Nothing was making sense.

"There _was_ someone, right?"

* * *

"Are you sure it's OK for you to come along with us today, Hiyori? The accident was not that long ago."

"Yeah, if you're doing it because not wanting to make us feel bad about rejecting going out, we totally understand that you need to rest, honestly."

"You guys sound just like my mother again. Cut it out!"

The three girls were walking slowly through the hallways of a nearby mall. In front of them a crowd revolved over a music store, many people standing in line in front of the main counter for paying the new Hyde's single advertised all over the place. Ami and Yama smiled at Hiyori as an apology for worrying too much, and then focused on the music store. Avoiding people as good as they could they made it to the inside where they got two copies of Hyde's record. They both looked like they could taste triumph.

"Ami-chan and Yama-chan really like this sort of stuff, don't you guys?", asked Hiyori, who witnessed it all from within a safe distance.

"THAT'S BECAUSE HYDE IS GODLIKE!" both girls said and fluttered back to the entrance to get in line for paying their records.

Hiyori assumed this was going to take a while, so she decided to wait over there. Shelf after shelf the records piled up showing their colorful covers. Hundreds of faces, hundreds of songs waiting to be discovered by someone. Hiyori started to regret not knowing any of it.

A group of middle school girls were making a fuss about a particular record, let out a few dumb giggles and left with a copy each.

"Is this what I should be doing with my time?" thought Hiyori, getting close to that particular shelf, "Am I supposed to be interested in this sort of things?". She didn't even looked at the name of the band or the record. Near that shelf they had a CD player with the record in it, so she just took the headphones and pressed the play button in the touchscreen.

A clear voice sang in her ears a beautiful but ripping sad tune about love. The music led her attention spectacularly from one part of the song to the next, and at one point a guitar rose above it all. The sound bewitched her, and Hiyori didn't knew exactly what made her entire skin get goosebumps; either the emotional impact she had over the guitar solo, or the fact that right above her, from a big poster at the very top of one of the walls of the store, someone was looking at her with a cold ice blue gaze.

Ami and Yama found her staring at the cover of the record she was listening to, holding a copy with shaky hands.

Hiyori looked up to them.

"Ami-chan… Yama-chan… who is he?"


	2. The boys in the band

**TRACK 2**

 **The Boys in the Band - The Libertines**

"Ami-chan, Yama-chan, who is he?"

The two girls turned around to see what she pointed. Across the room, the young man returned their gaze with cold eyes.

"That's SHRINE guitarist, they made their debut about six months ago" explained Yama, and then added with a little giggle, "what happened, Hiyori-chan? Your feminine urges just woke up all of a sudden?"

Ami couldn't help laughing at the sight of the face Hiyori did when she understood what Yama was implying.

"…the hell are you talking about, Yama-chan?" her face turned into a very deep shade of red.

"To tell you the truth, Hiyori-chan, you have an amazingly good taste" teased Ami in a playful note.

"I-I don't know what you mean, I just came to buy this record…"

Ami and Yama just couldn't stop smiling.

"But we came to buy Hyde's single"

"Well, yeah, but I do like this group and I'm purchasing this one…"

"'Group'?" both friends found weird Hiyori's choice of words.

"Excuse me! Can you tell me the price of this record?"

"Hey! Hiyori-chan! Come back! We were just teasing you!"

* * *

"SHRINE made their debut with that label a few months ago, thought they say the band itself has around four years with the same members; which is surprising because the bassist is really young" Said Yama, over her iced coffee whipped cream. Hiyori was eagerly listening while carefully observing the record she just bought. Her monthly money was dangerously reduced because of her purchase, and she had to still find an excuse to falling short of it at the end of the month, but she regretted nothing. "That's why the last news we had about them were so scandalous".

"What happened?" asked Hiyori, removing the booklet off the plastic container, trying to not get lost between all the new words she had to learn, which Yama managed as an expert.

"The singer dismissed the band, there was even rumors about her retirement, but soon after that she was seen getting out of the office of a different label."

"With another man!" Ami added, when it seemed until that moment that her attention was completely taken by her ice cream cone. Yama snorted.

"That is SO just a rumor, Ami-chan."

Her friend looked at her from behind her glasses with sparkles in her eyes. This kinds of subjects were actually her specialty. "Do you SERIOUSLY think she just woke up a day and went 'I want a change of band', Yama-chan?"

"What do you guys mean?" asked Hiyori, making a true effort to follow the conversation.

"Ami-chan thinks the singer left the band because she wanted to run away with her lover."

"It's not just me, Yama-chan! There's a lot of people who also believes it! Just look at the facts!" trying to overcome the embarrasement that the word "lover" caused her, Hiyori asked again:

"I'm so sorry guys, but I'm having a really hard time knowing exactly who are you talking about…"

Yama took the booklet off of Hiyori's hands and quickly searched through the pages until she found the picture of an astonishing blonde woman with fierce eyes, and showed it back to her. The voice of that woman was exactly what the photograph portrayed: sexy, mature, and somewhat aggressive. She was extremely beautiful.

"Rumor has it that she and your boyfriend…"

"WHAT BOYFRIEND, YAMA-CHAN!?"

"…the guitarist, of course, had an affair years before the band got together"

"Hiyori-chan, the guitarist is really gorgeous, but even so, that girl fled to the arms of another guy", Ami added, with a rascal tone, "supposedly her solo album is about to go out".

Hiyori received the booklet again, flipping over the photos. Her heart skipped a beat when she looked at the portrait of the blue-eyed guy that had been on the verge of getting killed.

Later, laying at her bedroom, Hiyori was taking her time before entering the shower to get down to dinner. The album ended for the third time, and Hiyori pushed play on the worn-down button of an old discman; borrowed from Ami-chan since in Hiyori's bedroom there was no way of playing music, and in her house "that scandalous music" was prone to be completely banished.

The music was strong, powerful, the singer's voice enhanced the top layers, glueing everything together. And, interlocked with it, the guitar crunched and howled thanks to the musician's skills. Hiyori saw him again clearly, his thin eyebrows, haughty nose and his eyes, thoughtful, intense, that seemed to want to swallow her whole and stripping her most hidden memory down…

"WHAT IS GOING ON WITH ME?!" Hiyori thought, with her face on fire, and threw the pillow she was hugging. The pillow bounced at the edge of her bed, exactly where the booklet had been, making it fall to the carpet, where it opened just at the middle. Hiyori got up from the bed and got on her knees besides the open booklet. Turning it around, she picked it up to read what it said.

"SHRINE members are:"

Her eyes flew swiftly over all the names until she found the one she was interested in.

"GUITAR – 夜卜"

"Yato?" she whispered, plopping back on her bed with the booklet opened in his picture. She let her arms drop after a few minutes, exhausted. With her earphones on and melodies filling her ears, the girl looked at the ceiling, thinking. She, Iki Hiyori, a regular schoolgirl, had jumped at the street to save the life of a promising rock star.

She chuckled to herself. Somehow, she finally felt herself enjoying her youth.

* * *

A dart hit the bullseye right at the center, sharing the spot with two others. The wrist halted in the midst of throwing another one, the hand wrapped around the dart and fell softly to the forehead.

"I'm such an idiot", said the guy with jet black hair, laying down on his couch. He looked around from his spot searching some distraction for his mind. For some reason, since a week ago he could not stay still. The smell of burnt rubber could be recalled by his uneasy mind, running at miles per hour; he was certain that someday without a notice it will end up combusting inside of his skull, leaving his body inert, liquid brain dripping down his eyes disgustingly…

Jolting like he had a spring attached to his back he crossed the room, that despite the dim lightning he knew as the back of his hand. He opened the door at the very back and threw himself on his bed, taking his guitar in that same movement. Chords. Scales. Sketches of melodies that may or may not become something useful. He looked around to find a piece of paper and between scribbles and blurred patches he wrote quickly a new melody. He kept playing, changed it, strikethrough it and wrote another one. His mind had no way of stopping and the ideas struggled to come out, to be played.

Magenta.

He threw his guitar to the bottom of his bed and plopped over his pillow with a grunt. He felt again the push on his back, the pain on his knees and palms.

"I'm seriously stupid."

He skipped at the nasty sound of the doorbell (didn't he had disconnected it last week?). The hateful sound repeated, and again he was on his feet like he was being pushed with a spring, running across the room before that hellish sound was made again. When he opened the door it made a screech, and he remembered he should have greased the joints a long time ago. Outside, lit by the sunset light, a blond guy appeared, making a smug smile when he noticed the irky face of the blue eyed guy, and pushed the doorbell again, looking him dead in the eye.

"I just fuckin' opened the damn door, Yukine!"

The youngster stepped inside from under his host's arm.

"I'm also glad to see you, asshole"

Yukine turned on the light of the place, ignoring the complaints of his friend. A buzzing white light flickered before illuminating the basement they were in.

In front of the door was a small living room with two leather couches ragged due to overuse. At the center, a coffee table could very well go unnoticed if over it there wasn't piles of instant ramen empty cups, empty beer cans, used paper sheets, notes, scores, different types of paper making a messy collage, that seemed to be on balance thanks to the dirty ashtray right at the top. Beyond the living room, against the bottom wall, a little kitchenette had noticeable signs of omission. The coffee maker was the only thing that seemed on acceptable conditions due its constant use. Everything else had that foggy appearance things get when they have not been used in a long time. A little beyond there was a door leading to a minuscule bathroom, and in front of it, at the very center of the place, a clean and very well kept pool table gave contrast with the rest, and further at the left, on top of a platform, covered by a sheet, the silhouette of a drum set and a mixer waiting for being used. Right at the bottom of that basement was his bedroom, in which there was only enough room for the bed, a little side table and the guitar stand. The natural light was supposed to enter through the window vents, but at that time the sunset light could not do much passing through untidy glass panes. Yukine sighed while looking for a place to sit. The black haired guy had thrown himself again on the couch he was lying.

"When was the last time you cleaned here?"

"Dunno'."

"God damnit, Yato! You can't even move that fat ass of yours to tidy up a bit in case someone comes?"

Yato jolted, "My ass is not fat!"

Yukine smiled when his plan began to work, "it's so fat it makes you unable to move and clean, that's why you stink the whole time!"

"I DON'T STINK!" retorted Yato, standing very still and quickly began picking up beer cans and junk food leftovers from the couch. Yukine seated once it was enough room. It was so easy making him do things. "Your feeding habits are so bad I'm amazed you're not dead already".

Yato huffed, busy picking up garbage.

His basement was at a place in town that the word "nice" wasn't quite fitting. The entrance opened to a hallway that led to a noisy street full of convenience stores tended by foreign people, mixed between filthy bars and pawn shops. The wall in front of the entrance was covered by old announcements glued layer after layer with paste. The stairs leading down in a curve to the door was forcefully whitewashed with layers of cheap white paint, and of course with the course of time and weather changes it was stroked down with black lines of humidity along the railing. Years before, the place was probably a nice residential area, because the doorpost had a delicate and complicated design, and displayed a tin "203" number, painted black without the smallest sign of care. The door also shown important signs of decay; one of those was the screech it made when it was opened, and the dry thump it made due the swelling of the wood after many years of direct rain and sunlight. Yukine thought that place was dangerous and very low profile, but Yato kept saying he didn't needed more. He was a weird guy, and Yukine and the others just let him be; even the fact that he refused to share the spacious house the label had given them to keep them together ("trapped", said Yato, usually, "watched") was something that everyone had simply accepted. After all, Viina was left and they didn't had something that could be called "a band" anymore…

"Say, Yuki, d'you came by yourself or you're being the carrier pigeon of that nasty old man?"

"I'm impressed about the faith you have in your friends", snapped Yukine, faking to be seriously hurt. Yato stood speechless, and the boy continued, "since you haven't been harassing me on my phone, I came to check if you were still alive."

"Hey, it was just a simple scratch on the knee, and my guitar only lost one string, it isn't something to make a big fuss about" said Yato, showing both palms in a soothing gesture. Yukine noticed the rubber gloves he was wearing to give a good scrub to the kitchen.

"You could've died. You were saved by a whisker". Yato answered with a thoughtful "hummm" and kept scrubbing the kitchen counter. "Or should I say _she saved you_ by a whisker?" Yato's hands stopped the circling motion they were doing, as he kept his gaze over the vivid yellow of his gloves. "Had she not been there" Yukine had said, later the day of the accident, "you could not be drinking that gallon of beer by yourself". He was right.

"Well… seems I have an amazingly good luck!"

Yukine scoffed.

"Yeah, right. And I imagine you already went to thank the source of your "good luck" for saving your sorry ass."

Yato turned around and pointed Yukine with the cleaning brush he was using, spilling foam everywhere, "now listen to me, you brat! I want you to go try and find a single specific person in this helluva town having nothing more than a name!"

"It's not as hard as it seems, genious! If she was at that street at that hour, it was not very long since she might have gotten out of school, so her school is somewhere near that place! Just check on the nearby schools around, and if you can remember her uniform, then you have half of the job already done!"

Yato looked at the boy, astonished. This kid was not just a hugely talented bassist, but he also was a lot more clever than he seemed.

"DON'T TELL ME YOU HADN'T EVEN THOUGHT ABOUT THAT, YOU DAMN IDIOT!"

* * *

 _REVIEWS ARE VERY MUCH APPRECIATED! Also, I want to write again, in case you find some grammar error please point it out so I can correct it! thank you so much for reading._


	3. Knocking on heaven's door

**TRACK 3**

 **Knocking on heaven's door – Guns n' Roses**

Blinding lights hit her eyes amongst the crowd ruckuss, crashing with her in an anguishing manner. She walked a little bit making her way through squeezes and bumps, paying attention to the sound they made. During a brief second there was a total silence and it was impossible for her to move anymore. Where she was she continuously received elbows to her ribs and stomps to her feet, and her heart skipped a beat when the music began. Trying really hard she made her way until the first rows, where she could clearly see the stage, lit with bright multicolored lights, and in that very same moment the sound of a guitar rose against the crowd's euphoria. She raised her eyes and the guitar player received a haze of red light from his back framing his body, lean, strong, and she could admire the movement of each finger as he played. She could see each muscle on his arms that was moved, humid tattooed skin, covered in sweat, that disintegrated into micro beads in the air when he shook his head ending his solo. The ache on her heart rose again when both pairs of eyes crashed into each other. It was really an enigmatic blue, almost not human. Before being able to even react, his eyes were closer to her. The guitarist was coming down the stage and people around him was opening up, giving him space to walk freely, until he reached to her.

"Iki-san", said a husky voice, calling her name. Deep, low, delicious. She could get used to hear her name on that voice, she thought, with her stomach turning to something liquid, almost starting to get painful when he reached with his hand to the small of her back and pulled her into him, closing the gap between their faces. With her chest on his, she felt the vibration of his voice, feeling her face combusting when she heard again, like a whisper:

"Iki Hiyori-san."

"Ya-"

A loud thump scared her and her back jolted backwards, and all of a sudden she found herself sitting in her classroom, mid-literature lecture and with Miss Kamishiro practically hovering above, looking at her through her glasses. She had let a heavy hard cover book fall on her school desk.

"I-ki Hi-yo-ri-san!" said the teacher, again. Still a little confused, Hiyori stood up jumping. She had been dreaming -Mid-class? What was wrong with her? The teacher turned around and slowly returned to her desk in front of everyone. A quiet mutter and some snickers could be heard from her classmates.

"Iki-san, if you feel tired, you're free to go to rest at the infirmary", said the teacher, still turning away from her, "I would advise you to, apparently you're running a fever". Hiyori realized her cheeks were still burning and wished to not be there with all her might. She barely could manage to talk.

"I-I feel… I'm fine."

"Well, so I suppose you could be kind enough to continue reading where we stopped."

Hiyori took her book between her hands but her brain didn't seemed to know where they had stopped reading.

"We're waiting, Iki-san", said the teacher, insisting. Hiyori turned her eyes on panic to her friend Ami, who had her notebook raised over her face, seizing the fact that Miss Kamishiro was still giving her back to them.

"P. 168 6th line!", said in thick and bold letters. Hiyori turned a couple pages and began reading.

 _"This tune goes manly.  
Come, go we to the king; our power is ready;  
Our lack is nothing but our leave; Macbeth  
Is ripe for shaking, and the powers above  
Put on their instruments."_

Hiyori ended the line with a faint little voice. It had been diminishing upon seeing the growing displease on the teacher's face, as if she was eating something extremely sour.

"Hiyori-san", she said, with a soft and sweet voice that didn't matched with the rest of her face, "I understand that up until now your grades are a little less than excellent in every subject, and that you're a top student even at a mayor quality institute like ours, but I need to ask you, and you need to be absolutely honest", Miss Kamishiro shifted at her seat and looked at her again over her glasses, "are you really aware that this is an elite college guidance school?"

Hiyori felt something hard going down her throat when she swallowed. "Yes, Miss."

"And I suppose you're also aware what does that implies, not only on your credits, but in your professional future."

"Yes, Miss."  
Hiyori lowered her eyes more and more. She was never the kind of person that teachers called upon. She kept listening to her professor while her sight traveled around. Outside the day was beautiful and from her classroom window she could see the end of the building number 2 and the main entrance, behind which the city seemed to invite her to float among the rooftops. Seemed nice.

A blue flash got her off the trance of her teacher's voice and suddenly she felt her heart racing wild. Adrenaline told her to run to the front gate, where a dark figure was wiping their sun shades in the cloth they had around the neck. They put the sunglasses on again with a whimsy gesture and shifted the cap over their head. Hiyori was starting to wonder what kind of attire was that, when an irritated squeal from Miss Kamishiro brought her back into the classroom once again.

"Iki-san! Are you even listening to what I'm trying to say?! This is an elite school and therefore if you're finding yourself unable to keep the rhythm, it will be better for you to reconsider."

Clearly, Hiyori was not thinking straight anymore. "I'm sorry, Kamishiro sensei", she snapped, "apparently I do have a bit of a fever, can I go to the infirmary?"

Even when it came out as a question, Hiyori had already stormed off the door as soon as she stopped talking, with her briefcase halfway open, trying to get _Shakespeare_ inside, without waiting for any response from her teacher, who had been left blank. Was her imagination or she was really flying to the front gate?

* * *

"And what _the fuck_ should I suppose to do now, Yukine?!" thought Yato, desperately searching for a believable excuse for a guy like him to be loitering outside a prestigious highscool. He found it after a few blocks searching. He could perfectly recall the lilac uniform of the girl he had shared a stare moments before she jumped at the street to save his life. He thought it would be better to hang around the neighborhood for a while until the school bell rang to be sure he wasn't getting suspicious eyes over him, but yet he stood there, carefully observing the building. Halways, sliding doors, big windows, laughters. All those things gave him a nostalgic feeling and he wondered if highschool now was the same as back then. Most surely it wasn't. At least not the way it had been for him.

A pale kid from an oval frame in the wall gave him a scared look. Due to the darkness of the room, he could barely tell it was his own face. The tie around his neck started to get uncomfortably tight and soon he noticed the itch the uniform gave against his skin, feeling heavy. He was an intruder at his own body, which felt numb and covered in cold sweat. From the other side of the haze of light from the window behind him, a cute little voice made the hairs of the nape of his neck to stand when it said, playfully:

"I told you dad was going to get mad."

Yato noticed a warm and nasty feeling at his feet, and looked down. The checkered blue slippers he used to hang around that house were stained with a warm and dark liquid. The smell filled his mouth with an acid taste. The puddle extended a little beyond the light from the window, giving enough lightning for making it able to distinguish the scarlet red of the blood, and the caked fur around the wound-

A squirrel sprinted along the sidewalk between his ankles, and Yato jolted, surprised, trying to not step on the _other_ squirrel following the first one. Intrigued and somewhat relieved for the two intruders good timing, Yato looked back at the direction they came from, expecting to see a cat. Getting down of a tree, gracefully, was the magenta eyed girl from weeks before.

Barely understanding what she just did, Hiyori ran to him. Flustered and breathless for the effort, she could hardly manage to speak. There was no doubt it was him.

"You!- here!..."

Yato placed a hand above his hip, staring at her with curiosity. "Good t'see you're fine."

"Wha'?" She had no clue what he was talking about, but her breathlessness and his intense gaze was enough to make her stutter and not being able to communicate properly was excruciating.

He had removed his sunglasses, and there was it, the paralyzing feeling of his catlike eyes, the thin bridge of his nose, the edge on his cheekbones.

"You're _quite_ verbal, don't cha?" he mocked sarcastically, before making proper eye contact. The hair on his nape stood again and he cleared his throat to keep in check of what he had to do. "Anyways, gotta go now."

Hiyori reacted until then, "Wh-why? You- How?-"

Yato reached at the back of his head with his hand "Listen, I really don't know whod'ya think I am, but you're surely mistaking me for someone else" he shifted his cap and the scarf before turning around. "I just came to check upon you, t'see if you were doin' fine, so there's nothing left for me to do!" he hesitated a bit before giving the first step, "anyways, thanks for saving me and stuff!" Yato began walking, but he couldn't gave two steps away when Hiyori spoke, this time with confidence.

"Your name."

Yato wasn't sure to have heard well. "W-what did you said?"

"I want you to tell me your name!"

He turned around and blinked at her a couple of times.

"You're kidding, right?"

Hiyori put on the most serious and steady look she could, even when her legs felt like jelly. She needed to hear it. She needed to know if the guy standing right in front of her was the same from the accident and the same she had been listening playing his music every night until falling asleep.

Yato was looking at her with interest, and she felt her skin get goosebumps with each passing second. He went from the brown hair framing her face, to her bright eyes, her tiny nose, the youthful lips. In an instant he got his attention to the gate before her. Three figures were crossing the main courtyard almost running.

"We have company" said Yato smiling, and to the confused look from the girl, he pointed at the gates with his chin. Hiyori turned around to see what he meant, and suddenly all the color left from her face, a shiver running through her entire body.

Miss Kamishiro, followed by the head teacher and the headmaster himself, were coming to her full speed. It was her first highschool year and she had already blew away her entire future, or so she thought when she saw the literature teacher looking at her with furrowed eyebrows in a way too severe expression. She felt something heavy in her hand and looked down, finding her briefcase which she had brought along with her the entire time. No matter from where you looked at this situation, it seemed like Hiyori was running away from highschool. A tall figure stood right next to her.

"Hey", she heard Yato saying. She looked at him directly in the eye. The helpless look on Hiyori's eyes, with the trace of little tears forming in the corners, made him stand straight suddenly and he looked to the street, to the teachers and again to her, alternatively. "Pop quiz! What did Gandalf said to the Fellowship of the Ring before falling into the mines of Moria?". Hiyori furrowed her eyebrows. Was he insane?

"What?!"

"Fly, you fools!" and saying this, he took her hand and began running in the opposite direction. Trying to catch her breath, Hiyori didn't know what to process first: if what was happening right now, or the electric feeling of Yato's hand holding hers, or what the teachers were yelling at her, back at the main gate.


	4. Monkey business

**Track 4.**

 **Monkey Business - Skid Row.**

The sound of the bat hitting the ball and the thrilled yells of the players conceived the loud way the pair let themselves fall against the baseball field fence once Yato considered they were far enough from highschool. Hiyori locked her fingers around the square holes on that fence, trying to catch her breath and finish processing what just had happened.

Never, in her entire life, she had run that much. She had never ran away from school with the headmaster chasing her back. She had never climbed a tree and definitely never had fallen asleep in class. Of course, she never thought about discovering a rock band to obsess over, nor she had stayed awake so many hours past midnight listening song after song. "I'm so screwed," she thought. A silent laughter brought her back from her own mind. Yato was sitting on the floor with the back against the fence. His hand was covering his eyes and by each passing moment his laughter was becoming louder.

"What's so funny?" asked Hiyori, chest still hurting and breathing heavily.

"Shoulda seen your face!" he said, "seemed like the world was gonna end at the moment!" the man continued laughing, and Hiyori felt how her cheeks were turning red. She stood up and did the first time that came to her mind: throw her school briefcase to his stomach. Yato let out a loud and painful huff.

"I'm sorry but I don't see exactly which part you find funny!" she said, with her hands on her hips and leaning forward to look straight into his eyes. "I'm practically running away from school! I honestly doubt this will look good in my good behavior report!"

Yato took her briefcase with both hands, looked straight to her and raised an eyebrow.

"Minutes ago I thought you barely knew how to speak and now you're using words too big for you," he smiled and got up, "but anyways, I think you should be thankful to me," he handed Hiyori her briefcase with a graceful gesture, and smiled. This was too much for her to handle, was this guy being serious?

"…the hell are you talking about?! You practically made me run away from my teachers!" Hiyori panicked as she spoke, "And my headmaster -In fact I think the whole school saw me running away with a complete stranger!"

"Well," said Yato, beginning to walk with the hands tucked inside his jersey's pockets, "it's really weird someone jumps the school fence to talk to a random stranger," he plopped over one of the benches under a tree, by the side of the park trail, "and it's even weirder that the random stranger actually plays along with the lunatic runaway to save her from her teacher's anger."

"So you actually believe you just saved me? The only thing you did was delaying the whole situation! This maybe will make it even worse!"

"Whatever, you don't have to worry about it until later" he said, moving a hand in the air.

"I can't continuously scape from all my problems" Hiyori said, with the most serious expression she could find.

"Oh, really? 'cause I've been doing it 19 years of my life."

Yato closed his mouth shut right there. He had said something very stupid and his cheeks were starting to look red. Hiyori looked at him, amazed, trying to contain her laugh. When she realized that Yato was embarrassed to the point of not looking at her, Hiyori sat next to him, on the bench.

"I'm sorry, but I can't thank you for this". Yato looked at her, completely confused.

"Oh, you're saying that my considerate action doesn't deserve a thank you? That's so unpolite!" Yato posed as offended, crossing his arms. Hiyori was intrigued about his attitude swings. She closed her eyes and turned to face the wall in front of her.

"I can't thank nothing to someone whose name I don't even know yet." The silence made Hiyori look at Yato with the corner of her eye. She found extremely hard to believe the same guy from the pictures, the virtuous guitarist from a popular rock band, was this goofy guy, looking at her suspiciously, sitting on a park bench, with a snapback hat facing backwards and a really weird attire, a jersey and boots.

"You mean you really don't know who I am?" asked Yato, more for himself. She chose to maintain the façade.

"Why? Should I know?"

"Where is your self-preservation instinct? I could be on the most wanted list or even a _Shapeshifter_."

"In any of those cases you wouldn't be here outside in broad daylight."

"Wow, miss-well-articulated, you know what a _Shapeshifter_ is, I thought you didn't had TV."

"What, you think I'm amish or something like that?"

"Well, you certainly speak funny."

"Oh, so you think speaking politely and correctly is to live away from society and technology?"

"Uhm…" Yato was suddenly out of retorts.

"Anyways, the one that seems to be uncommunicated with the world is the person who doesn't has enough decency to simply introduce themselves and goes out there without any sense of personal style."

"Whats wrong with my clothes, granny?!"

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING GRANNY?!" Hiyori stomped hard on Yato's foot, who apologized immediately. They both sighed. Yato stood up and placed himself in front of her. Hiyori stood up by reflection.

"M-my name is Fu… I'm Yato!"

"Yato," repeated Hiyori, with a dreamy voice. It was actually _him_. "Nice meeting you, Yato-san, my name is Iki Hiyori." She made a small reverence. "May our relationship be rewarding."*

"How old-!" Yato interrupted his mouth when Hiyori shot him a murderer look and also did a little bow, with his hand on the nape of his neck."Uh… same to you"**

After a brief, ackward moment in which they just smiled at eachother, Yato spoke again.

"You called me Yato-san"

"Well, yeah, I barely know you," added her, a bit confused, "but if you like, I can call you Yato".

"What about Yato-sama?" he asked, with a big smile. Hiyori looked at him again, with a blank expression.

"I'm not going to treat you like a deity, Yato!"

"You already took away the -san" Yato cried.

"What other way should I call you?"

"Sometimes he answers for 'idiot'" added another voice, "'damn bastard' also works, or 'asshole', depending on the occasion."

The blond kid with middle school uniform standing in front of the expending machines next to the fence opened his can of juice and gave it a loud gulp, while Yato got close to him with a menacing face and raising an accusatory finger at him.

"H-hey you! Kid! Shuddup!"

The kid ignored him completely, he pushed away Yato's arm with his free hand and slowly came close to Hiyori, who was quite intrigued -and nervous, at being face to face with SHRINE's bassist.

"My name is Tendou Yukine!***" said the blond, and smiled, "how d'ya do?" He was cute. Hiyori watched as he sat were Yato was, and the later also came close, giving big strides and an exasperated huff.

"My name is Iki Hiyori!" she said, smiling.

"You're being too friendly now!" claimed Yato.

"I suppose he already thanked you for saving his life" Yukine asked, giving another sip to his apple juice.

"He tried."

"ARE YOU IGNORING ME?!"

"Goddamnit, you're too damn noisy! Sit!" snapped Yukine, massaging his forehead with his fingers.

"Are you seeing a collar around my neck, brat!?"

"I am seeing excessively ridiculous clothes, even for you!"

"Oh so you're also gonna give me that?"

"Bet you woke up late as hell and you threw over yourself the first thing you could find."

Yato let out a "Tch!" and ended up sitting at the other side of Hiyori, who didn't know if it was better to buy a juice to excuse herself and let them finish their argument or just laugh. Her face was choosing the second option.

"Well, if he already thanked you, I have to take him with me now," Yukine smiled. Hiyori's smile faded out, and Yato snapped back.

"Take me where?!"

"Kofuku misses you."

"You don't say!" Yato crossed both arms and legs, "she coulda' told me that herself. I'm not moving."

Yukine had had enough.

"Do you always have to act as a fucking brat?!" Yato turned his nose to the sky with his face away from Yukine. The kid rubbed his face with his palms, exasperated. "Okay, Tenjin called. He wants to see us at home. Happy? Now let's go."

Hiyori was wondering who Kofuku and Tenjin were, when Yato stood up and walked a few steps.

"Say, Hiyori," she jumped a bit, surprised. He had caught her by surprise, "do you still want to know who I am?"

* * *

It took them an hour and forty minutes to arrive to a nice residential area at the outskirts of the city. Hiyori almost had a rage attack when she realized where they actually were and that it should have taken them half the time to arrive… if Yato didn't insisted in taking confuse and alternative paths. Yukine simply let him be, arguing he was trying to cover his footprints. Yato was too odd of a guy. So weird that his own existence was odd in itself. Yukine didn't bothered to explain more about why was Yato always so defensive, so she didn't do any attempt of asking further. Somehow she felt Yukine wasn't entirely agree with her coming, and she could certainly understand. Walking through meandering streets, at sunset, she began to wonder how much more time will this façade last. To be honest she didn't even knew why she chose to act as if she didn't knew anything. Looking at Yato's back from behind, covered from his black jersey, she concluded she needed to know more about this guy. He was just too inconstant, too mysterious, too… Yato stopped suddenly and with a feline movement he turned around to see her. His blue eyes pierced Hiyori's ones and she imagined that's the feeling a prey gets. Se surprised again when the guy's face changed into a soft smile.

"We're not that far away now," and kept walking. Hiyori tried to regulate the sudden rush in her heart while trying to pay attention to the path they were following. Once to the right, two to the left and they were finally in front of a long brickwall decorated with a bush asleep because of the cold of the incoming winter. It surely was lovely on spring, but right now Hiyori felt it was doing nothing to solve a little bit the ominous feeling she suddenly got. Who was this Kofuku? Who was Tenjin?  
A little beyond the brick wall, a white fence closed the path to a little cobble street, framed by tall cypress trees illuminated by built-in lights in the road. That road meandered a bit and finally it turned abruptly to the left, hiding the rest of the property away. Over an edge of the fence they had a switch connected to an intercom, and Yukine pushed it with enthusiasm.

"You love doin' that, don'cha?" Said Yato to the boy.

"Now you will have to say hello because you're an idiot."

Yato was about to snap back when a dreamy and young voice andswered Yukine's ring.

"Helloooooo?!" sang the voice. Hiyori thought it was very funny that such a small kid responed the intercom, but somehow she felt relieved.

"H-Hey, Kofuku! Um… It's been a while, huh?" Yato spoke, doubting.

"YATTY-CHAN!" after her supersonic yell, the voice became muffled as she had turned around, "Daikoku! Yatty-chan came to see us!" Again the little voice could be heard clear, "come in! we were waiting for you!"

A loud metallic "clack" was heard after a buzz, and Yukine pushed one of the halves of the gates inside, holding it for Yato and Hiyori to follow him.

What from the outside looked just as a simple garden, from the inside it revealed a place full with comfort. To the left it was a pool covered in black plastic, to the right a terrace with a wooden gazebo decorated with white string lights. The gravel cracked nicely below Hiyori's shoes, that almost didn't noticed they were turning left already. The twist on the road gave view to an spectacular fountain surrounded by some kind of parking lot. Hiyori saw several cars parked in it, and her attention was stolen from the huge black hummer, and for what evidently seemed like a Subaru of an intense blue shade, poorly covered with a dusty cloth. A little beyond was the residence, a California style construction, vanilla color with blue roofing. The lightning gave her the impression of entering a place within a dream. Her eyes went from one place to the other, the clear fountain, the white door with crystals that allowed her to see the hughe chandelier dangling in the stairs on the inside, the cypress that surrounded them, Yato, the wood entrance with beveled glass, the marble floor, the threatening figure raising in front of them with crossed limbs.

Hiyori stopped at the sight of him. No matter where you looked at him from, the guy looked like a Yakuza hitman, with a pink shirt rolled up above his elbows unbuttoned down to the chest, 3-day beard and a lit cigarette between his lips. So that's what this was all about? The house, the luxury, Yato's anxiety? Hiyori began to panic for following two completely rather strangers to the house of someone who looked like that, when Yato tried to say hello to that guy with good vibe, failing at the security of his voice.

"H-hey, Daikoku, long time no see huh!"

Daikoku furred his eyebrows.

* * *

 _*Hiyori used the standard Japanese to introduce herself, in contrast with Yato which was entirely different and informal. "Douzo yoroshiku onegai shimasu" , which is the phrase you usually end your introducing, literally means ""May our relationship be rewarding."  
** Yato also used a formality here, by answering "Kochira kozo".  
***"Tendou" reads "heaven" or "cherub", depending on the reading of the kanji. I think it suits him._


	5. Go with the flow

**TRACK 5**

 **Go with the flow – Queens of the Stone Age.**

Hiyori barely had time to react before Yato began to run through the enormous garden, followed close by that guy named Daikoku. Shyly, the girl approached Yukine, who was just watching the scene calmly, like an everyday thing.

"Is… is there any problem? Does Yato owes him something?"

Yukine turned to look at her, a tad confused. He then smiled and crossed his arms behind his head, lazily entering the house. The double door was open.

"Probably his life, you know. Being Yato, you never know."

Yato also entered the house chased by Daikoku and Hiyori dared to follow them. Once in the hall, she let out a "sorry to disturb" that was barely perceptible, and began to wonder if she should take out her shoes, listening to the ruckuss the chase made. It was just then when she could heard beside her a youthful little voice. It was the same from the intercom at the gate.

"Hi hi! Why don't we know each other?"

Hiyori turned around and was very surprised about finding a girl which age was hard to guess with just one look. She was wearing a t-shirt with a panda design and a pair of jeans that ran big on her, probably because the owner seemed to be the guy trying to kill Yato. Her bright bubblegum pink hair surely made her the center of attention wherever she went, plus, she was incredibly cute. Blushing over her unpoliteness, Hiyori began to introduce herself bowing down deeply, and when she looked up again, the girl was giving her a sweet smile. After a spark in her eyes, she took her by the arm with a powerful grip and led her -dragged her, to one of the adjacent rooms, a Japanese style living room, with a kotatsu at the center, while she chatted merrily.

"My name is Kofuku, Hiyorin~! It's a pleasure meeting you! Here! Sit! Let's eat some pastries!"

Hiyori didn't know if to thank the fact she was being treated, to take off her shoes, or tell her it was completely inappropriate to give her a nickname when they had literally minutes of knowing each other's names. When she understood what had happened, she was already sitting at the nice and warm kotatsu and Kofuku was pouring cups of tea. Yukine was at the kotatsu too, lying down with the TV remote in one hand, changing channels absentmindedly.

"Kokki, honey! Leave Yatty-chan alone and come have a cup of tea!~"

" _Honey"_. Hiyori felt really embarrassed, she just had noticed that not only Kofuku had confirmed that the man from before was her guy, but also that he was no Yakuza. The unkempt beard, a different hairdo and the clothing made hard for her to tell Daikoku was no one less than Kokki, SHRINE's impossibly skilled drummer. Hiyori felt a gaze upon her, and turned to Yukine, who turned again immediately to look back at the TV. What the hell was all this?

Yato entered the living room sprinting, and hid behind Hiyori. Daikoku followed him.

"Are you really that pathetic that you have to hide behind a schoolgirl to avoid me breaking your neck in two?"

Yato smiled to Hiyori, replying to her curious look.

"Don't worry, Hiyori, this guy looks terrifying but what you really should be careful about is that he is totally into kids."

He told her that somewhat rushed and in a whisper, but it was loud enough for Daikoku to close his huge hands into fists.

"You bastard!"

"It's nothin' but the truth! Your happiness is endless every time you look at Yukine…"

"Don't drag me into your stupid problems, dude" said Yukine, waving one hand without taking his eyes away from the TV.

Daikoku threw himself to Yato's neck and dragged him a little further, so he could shake Yato to his heart's content without bothering Hiyori.

"I'm glad to see things around here have not changed," said a polite and manly voice. The girl turned around to the living room's door, and saw an elegant gentleman with a sharp suit and a fedora flirtratiously placed over his crisp gray ponytail, and a goatee and moustache that gave him a sybarite look. Kofuku received him with a somewhat easy manner, but still showing respect, standing to ask for his coat and his hat.

"Tenjin-san! Welcome! We were expecting you!"

Daikoku dropped Yato and hurried to look for another cup of tea. Yukine turned the TV off and Yato -who had fell to the floor with a loud thump, simply arranged his clothes and retreated to a corner looking at the garden through the window.

"It's been a while, Yato!"

The guy looked at Tenjin, who just chuckled. Apparently Yato usually behaved like that with him. He thanked his tea to Daikoku and turned to look at Hiyori, with curiosity.

"Young girl, it is a pleasure to meet you." Hiyori blushed and bowed down so much she could actually see the bottom of his tea cup.

"I-it's a pleasure to meet you, sir! My name is Iki Hiyori!"

"Iki Hiyori? My name is Tenjin Michio." With a dashing movement, the man handed her a card with his name. Below the kanji in which 'Tenjn Michio' was read, were the words 'Executive Producer'. "Are you joining us today for the meeting?"

Suddenly, Hiyori didn't knew what to say. Yato spoke harshly from his corner: "She doesn't know nothing, geezer, leave her. She won't make no harm."

Tenjin looked at her, even more interested. "Oh, I see, I see. It is indeed strange that someone your age does not know about this amazing band!"

She couldn't remove her eyes from her tea, completely embarrassed. She could feel Yukine's eyes staring at her. This pose was getting out of her hands.

"I… am busy with my studies, sir."

"Oh, really? Which grade are you now?"

"It's my first year of high school, sir."

"What are you majoring into? Have you decided yet?"

The girl opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out of it. She closed it again with discomfort.

"Okay, enough of this interrogation!" Snapped Yato, "the hell do you want!?" Instead of getting offended, Tenjin smiled.

"Impatient as always, aren't we, Yato-kun?" he continued, after another brief look at Hiyori. "Very well, let me get straight to the point. Right now, I don't consider you as any asset to my company if you're not producing anything besides your record's sales."

Yato looked outside again. Money. Of course.

"With this said, I'm seeing myself in the shameful need of giving you a deadline."

Yukine sat upright. "A deadline?"

"That's right, Yukine-kun. Thanks to _someone_ , Viina ended up sick of this band and you were left without a singer. A band without a voice is like an astronaut without oxygen. He will end up dying sooner or later."

Yato let out a loud huff. "She left b'coz she wanted! You're never going to stop thinking it's my fault, d'ya'?"

"I am not going to deny you have a very difficult personality and a very peculiar tendency to throw tantrums for absolutely no reason at all."

"This is ridiculous!" Yato left his place, jolting up. "Just settle your terms and leave! The others will pass me your memo!"

"Yatty, where are you going?" asked Kofuku, making a pouty face.

"I'll be outside, where I can't see this damn goat's face."

Tenjin didn't lose his temper. Hiyori thought that was rather admirable due the horrible attitude Yato was displaying at the time.

"Always running away, Yato-kun! Why don't you drop that act? It is rather obvious that even when you think you have total control over your life, I am actually observing closely each movement you make."

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Yato said, barely turning his face to look at him, standing right at the door.

"You did not wanted to come living under the same roof as your fellow band mates, scared of us taking your precious freedom away. I actually know exactly where are you all the time, Yato-kun. Did you really thought we were going to let you out there at your fate?"

Yato furrowed his eyebrows, and stomped out the room with loud steps. The front door opened, and he went out slamming the door. Tenjin sighed when Kofuku tried to apologize.

"My dear, worry not. I actually did wanted to talk to him, and he's at least aware of the most important part." He stood up slowly and took his coat and hat from the hangers on the wall. "Please do not take this the wrong way, in this business, ultimatums are a dynamic thing. Work hard, in three months I want to see you with a new singer, and new material to review and schedule in-studio hours." He turned to look at Daikoku, "make sure he gets his ass to rehearsals." Daikoku nodded and set himself to see Tenjin away.

"Easier said than done, but I will." The old man smiled. With a gesture with his hat, he bid farewell to Hiyori and the rest.

"I will see you later, everyone, Iki-san."

The front door closed again with a tinkling sound, and this time they did hear the cracking of the gravel of the trail under the producer's car tires. Hiyori met with Kofuku's eyes, that looked at her as knowing all the questions she wanted to make.

"Tenjin is our producer," she informed her, with a dreamy smile, "he has been from a long time. Some years ago, Kokki and the others performed at a pub in which he was at, and when I saw he liked the music I approached and we chatted a lil' bit." When she saw Hiyori still giving her a completely lost look, she noted: "I'm the band manager," and gave her a bright smile. Hiyori looked at the two people remaining at the living room.

"So… a band," she stated, even when she already knew the answer.

"And one of the best ones," scoffed Yukine, proudly.

Hiyori smiled.

* * *

The sun had already gone when Tenjin left. Daikoku didn't enter the house again. He walked to the left instead until reaching a tile porch from which a little pond garden extended forth. He took the cigar box out of his pocket and lit one skillfully. After the first cloud of smoke, he relaxed over one of the stilts.

"…the fuck are you looking at, you damn idiot?" he let out, apparently to no one.

"I f… I forgot my lighter."

Daikoku looked at Yato. The light of the little pond barely touched the young man's profile, who was holding a cigarette between his lips, sitting hunched in one of the benches under the porch. Daikoku threw him his zippo, and Yato catched it mid-air.

"Thanks, man." He lit his cigarette and threw the zippo back at Daikoku. After a somewhat brief silence, Yato spoke again. "I s'pose it's time for us to get our shit together and work, huh?"

The man brushed his hand against his hair, exasperated. "Unless you make Viina come back, I don't see how are we going to get out of this."

Yato let out a bitter laugh. "Viina wouln't come back for all the world's gold," he put out his cigarette against the floor with violent stomps "and I wouln't ask her even if my life depended on that."

"That goddamn pride you both have!" spitted Daikoku.

Yato began walking again to the inside of the house. He gazed upon the man with the corner of his eye.

"Sometimes I feel that's the only thing I have left."

* * *

Hiyori had barely realized what time it was. It wasn't until Daikoku offered her a second cup of tea that she turned to look at the living room's clock on the wall, and she stormed off, followed closely by Yato. He couldn't reach her before the end of the street. Yukine was also behind them.

"Whoa whoa whoa wait! The hell you think you're going by yourself?" let out Yato, when she finally stopped running. Hiyori was about to have a panic attack.

"I didn't even realize it was this late! They are surely worried at home!" Walking fast, Hiyori approached the station.

"Hey! Relax! They haven't even called you yet!" Yato laughed, following her much easier.

"Call me where?!"

"To… your mobile phone?" He quickly began to realize the situation, and Hiyori thought his eyes were coming off his face for the surprise. "YOU DON'T OWN ONE?!"

Pissed, Hiyori hurried up. The station was close.

"Repeat what you said previously about not being amis, please, I would love to hear that again."

"Are you always this obnoxious? I don't see the need for you to be like this."

"It's hard to know the usefulness of things when you haven't thought you need a mobile phone."

Hiyori let out a groan of exasperation, while she scanned her prepaid card on the station entrance. Surprised, she saw Yato and Yukine doing the same.

"The hell you're doing?"

"Do you seriously think we would let you around there by yourself at this hour WITHOUT A MOBILE PHONE?"

"OH GOD." Hiyori turned away, spinning on his heels.

Despite Yato's constant teasing, the road back home was a lot quicker of what she expected. When she realized, she was already at the station closer to her home. The boys stepped out of the train with her.

"Thank you for the company, it was very nice of you."

"Have a nice rest, Hiyori!" Said Yukine, "It was a pleasure to meet you!" she smiled.

"Same to you!" and she began walking. A couple seconds later she heard someone running after her.

"Hey, wait! Where do I send the messenger pigeon? In case of, you know, you wanting to see me again." Hiyori looked at Yato directly. A smug smile was spreading all over his face.

"If you keep bothering me, nowhere at all."

"Aren't you impressed?"

"About what, exactly!?"

Yato blushed.

"W… I- I have a band!"

After a few seconds of silence, Hiyori laughed. Yato looked away, totally embarrassed.

"What was that? You sound like a middle school boy!"

"Tsk! Whatever!" said Yato, rummaging at the inside of his pockets, and found one minuscule piece of paper. "Pen!" Hiyori blinked a few times before removing the inside of his portfolio. The pen was given back to her, along with the paper with something written in it. "Yo do know how to use e-mails, right?"

Hiyori gave him a venomous look.

"Of course! I'll have to make my donkey walk faster to generate more electricity, but I think I have everything under conrol."

Yato smiled.

"That's better than a messenger pigeon," he turned around to go back to Yukine, "give your donkey a carrot for me."

Hiyori looked at them getting away, with her gaze fixed on Yato's shoulder. After another few seconds, she jolted again and hurrily headed home.

"What the HELL was all that?" said Yukine, while waiting for the return train.

"What are you talking about," Yato asked.

"Man, you look like a lost puppy!" let out the blond guy, wrinkling his nose. "It's cool you ended up with this already. You thank her, you made her have a nice afternoon and you returned her home! We can all continue with our lives like if nothing happened."

They entered a wagon in the train that just arrived. Yato paid close attention to the name of that station.

"Sure."

Hiyori noticed the little piece of paper she had in her hand until several minutes later. Opening it carefully, she discovered that Yato had, indeed, written down his email there. " _What does all this means?"._ Hiyori was thinking about using a computer from her school the next day to send him an email when, all of a sudden, she remembered that tomorrow she would probably have no school the next day. Disheartened, she folded the little paper away (was it a candy wrapper?) and saved it in her wallet while she thought what was she going to tell her parents _. "Just one more corner"_ she thought, and she froze at the minute she turned to that corner.

The walls of her house were lit with blues and reds of the police car lights. Hiyori ran down the street, full speed.


	6. A hard day's night

**TRACK 6**

 **A hard day's night – The Beatles**

* * *

Hiyori turned on her bedroom light, tossed the school briefcase aside over her desk and plopped on her bed, wrinkling her ruffly duvet. With the face agains her pillow, she yelled. Once she calmed herself down a bit, she thought about those last few busy days.

When she arrived at home last night, her mother had hugged her, crying her heart out. After a couple uncomfortable questions and warnings from police officers, Hiyori's parents thanked the officials driving around the neighborhood after the little miss perfection Iki Hiyori getaway was announced on her home over the phone, directly from the school main office. Hiyori was at the kitchen table, with a hot chocolate mug in front of them and the severe look of her parents fixed on her bangs. She couldn't dare to raise her eyes off her mug to face them. Her father spoke first.

"I think you owe us an explanation, young lady."

Mrs. Iki pushed further, seeing her daughter's nervous silence.

"We will have to see the headmaster with you tomorrow to provide an explanation of what is really going on here, Hiyori", and added, with an afflicted tone, "to think our daughter, our little treasure, a role model student, is out there on the street with a complete unknown person…"

Hiyori's father took Mrs. Iki's hand in a cherishing gesture to calm her down. He looked straight to his daughter, who was sure she was a few inches shorter.

"We just want to know what's happening, princess."

Hiyori sighed, containing a sob. "Role model student", her mother had said. That was exactly the problem! She had always made an effort to be clean, to be good, to be correct. Hundredths of times she thought on doing the complete opposite, but she hadn't; the problem was that the first time she had actually done it, it was so surprising that it had to be a complete scandal. It was so hard to feel that everything you do, everything you want, has to be thought and re-thought at least three times before you said it! "And then, you realize you never actually said what you wanted", Hiyori thought, closing her eyes shut. Her mind was running wild everywhere without finding a clear answer. What should she answer to her parents? This two people had been worried about her wellbeing during all 16 years of her life, plus a few more from his brother, and now they were lost, worried and concerned about her, who had just acted by pure instinct. What should she say? She couldn't just go with "turns out I found out the guy I almost break my skull in two for is a debuting Rockstar with no sense of personal style and a way too strange attitude", she had to think something else. She would have liked to have the cold nerve of her brother, taking extra shifts on E.R., making really hard decisions in record time. But of course, her brother probably had never ran away from school like her, he was always perfect, always an example, the ideal son…

Hiyori opened her eyes and smiled. The answer was right there!

"I'm sorry I worried you, mother, father", and she added, after a brief pause and a slight reverence, "actually this was supposed to be a secret for both of you". Her parents traded a tense look. "It was a surprise… but I actually have never done something like this, so I think I was being way too clumsy to not catch attention."

Hiyori let out a nervous laugh. Her parents shared a face of complete confusion.

"S-surprise?" muttered her mother, "honey, what are you talking about?"

Hiyori sat straight on her chair, and filled her lungs. "Your anniversary will be in a few months, remember?"

For a short period of time, the time at the kitchen froze. The couple's faces were a mixture between washed out anger, absolute surprise and an almost hilarious confusion. Mr. Iki cleared his throat.

"25 years of marriage, true… it's true…"

"Hiyori, baby, you…!" her mother couldn't came up with no coherent statement, and placed her fingers over her lips.

"We were trying to organize it without you noticing..."

"So then, the "man" the headmaster saw you running with…?" Mr Iki began.

"It was brother, father. I'm really sorry to have worried you like this."

Yet another lie. Hiyori felt as if her heart was made of lead for lying so many times throughout the day, but fortunately she seemed to be good at it – "what kind of a talent is that, Hiyori?", she scowled herself – so good that at least for the time being her plan was working really smoothly. Her parents never spoke to Masaomi unless he called first, that was the agreement they did once he started working at E.R. They understood he was always packed up with work and it would be way too unfortunate if they had searched for her with him too. She heard the comments of her parents with a bitter taste on her tongue. They seemed happy. Because of a lie, but humans use to do that regularly, right? Happiness, however, tends to be ephemeral.

"I need to speak with Masaomi this time. You shouldn't have bothered in making all this fuss in secret, you both can get into serious trouble", said her dad, taking the kitchen phone and dialing a number. With each button, Hiyori was losing all the color on her skin, and a shiver traced all the way down her spine when she realized he was actually dialing her brother's number. It had been too good to last long. After a few seconds, her brother picked up.

"I'm glad you answer, Masaomi! Your sister already told us what is going on, you really made us extremely concerned!", Hiyori was trying to hide her panic and watched intently her dad's change of expression. He was taking too long to explode, why did they delayed so much her agony? "You could have planned things in a much subtler manner! Appearing at her school without any notice, the teachers were honestly really scared!" Mr. Iki made a pause to listen. Hiyori waited, sure that her end was close. Weirdly enough, her father's face didn't show any changes. "Thank you for all of this, son, you know both are everything to us, and for you to be organizing this kind of event makes us really flattered!", yet another pause; what the hell was going on? "Ah, sure, we will see you tomorrow at the hospital. Sure, here she is," her father turned to look at her, smiling. "Masaomi wants to speak with you, Hiyori."

The girl took the phone, crushed it between her hands and stepped back a bit, smiling nervously, before sprinting all the way to her bedroom. She closed the door behind her.

"Brother?"

The silence at the other side of the line was a clear sign that Masaomi was furious. His loud sigh confirmed it.

"So you finally lost your mind, huh?"

"L-listen, Masaomi, tha…"

"I don't know what you are about to thank me for, but I really don't want to hear about it…"

"Thank you for lying for me", she said, boldly, with a hint of desperation on her voice about to begin to break. The line stayed silent again. Hiyori leant herself against her bedroom wall and let herself fall slowly until she finished up sitting on the floor.

"Anything you have said or done," he spoke again, trying to be completely clear, "I'm sure you had a really good reason to do it."

Hiyori let the air she didn't know she was holding on her lungs. She relaxed so much that she could swear she was about to vomit. Her brother was so good that even when he didn't understood a thing their father had said, he simply played along, just because it was about her.

"How can I pay you for this? You seriously just saved m…"

"Let's just leave this matter aside, sister, before I begin to want to know more about why the hell you ran away from school and with whom, but if you really want to pay me…" He raised his voice, because Hiyori couldn't stop stuttering, "then let me suggest this: you involved me in a supposed celebration for our parent's wedding anniversary. You would have to do that by yourself, and you will give me part of the credit for that, just as if we were doing this together. Not a word to mom and dad, what do you think?"

Hiyori doubted.

"Masaomi, I have absolutely no clue on how to organize a wedding anniversary party."

"I told that as a suggestion, but actually you don't have another option, Hiyori" he said, leaving her frozen. At the end she wasn't being as blessed as she thought. "This was all your idea."

"…leave it on me…" she muttered.

"Stay out of trouble, understood?"

"Yes, brother."

"I'm going back to work, this phonecall already took too much of my time."

"Take care."

The line disconnected with a quiet crunchy sound. Hiyori dropped the phone as if it was made of lava and hugged her knees with her arms, burying her head on them. She tried to breathe, to calm herself down. The velvety black from the inside of her eyes turned into the clear image of a smiling guy, sitting on the bench of a park with the snapback hat placed backwards and wearing a jersey with bots. She immediately stood with an exasperated huff and threw herself over the bed. "Not now!", she complaint. To her brain, maybe. Or to him.

She didn't noticed falling asleep.

Her dad left the house early, so the one standing on the hallway next to her beside the door to the teacher's room, was her mother.

It was just as terrible as she thought it will be. Miss Kamishiro was standing as a crow on a branch next to the headmaster, who had Hiyori's file over the desk and began turning the pages once they were both seated in front of him and the secretary had closed the door behind them.

"Iki Hiyori", he began, and in his square face a disappointed expression was beginning to form, "excellent notes since always, an outstanding sports participation," he looked at her dead in the eye, "having all the assets of an elite student. I can't believe you simply chose to put your university future at risk to escape, in the whole extension of the word, halfway the school schedule, with that young man."

Her mother spoke.

"I can explain this, sensei." Hiyori somehow felt bad about her lie had been successful; adjectives like "beautiful children" and "really touching" came out as bullets from her mother's mouth, leaving the headmaster perplex.

"Well, the fact this man is her brother actually turns this into a less unfortunate situation," he admitted. Hiyori dared to take her eyes out her file, and swiftly looked at the literature teacher, who again seemed to be tasting a piece of lime zest. The rest of the school year was about to turn into a complete nightmare. "But there are proper ways to do things, miss Iki." Hiyori lowered her head.

"I'm so sorry."

"I guess a lot of this comes out from the fact that you, young lady, have no activities on clubs or something similar after school hours", continued the headmaster. He did have made his research on her file. "Social activities are extremely important in a good citizen education. There is no use in having outstanding grades if you can't work as a part of this society."

"Sensei, regarding that, Hiyori has lessons almost every afternoon, with its exceptions." Said her mother.

"Oh, well, but I meant social activities inside the school. There is two or three good lessons a young miss her age can learn chatting and involving with her school mates in any after-school activity. I recommend you to reduce the number of lessons Iki-san goes to, if possible."

"Yes, sensei, of course"

Hiyori, once again, had to sit tight while her life was being decided. She remembered Yato's scene the day before, yelling and stepping out to Kofuku's house garden. She reminded his thin frame, curling up in a corner like an angry cat before throwing a blow. Bad kitty. But I can't be mad at you, kitty, you have a pair of eyes like that…

"Not now, Hiyori! Goddamni it!", she scolded herself again. It was weird to have this urge that made her brain go running full speed to places where it shouldn't.

The headmaster had already stood up and looked outside through the window, hands behind her back.

"There won't be any punishment for Iki-san", he finally said. Miss Kamishiro jumped a bit. "However", he continued, "she will have a limit of two weeks to return to my office with a club form properly filled out. Pick one you like, Iki-san, you will surely find something to help you develop your social skills."

Her mother returned home a bit after that. Hiyori took a little longer to return to her classroom, and passed in front of a cork board in the hallway. She stopped to look at the big amount of posters and announcements pinned to it: notices of all kinds, an announcement about the bathrooms on the third floor being broken, requests for volunteers to sport clubs, tutorings, the kitchen club, the music club, the club of space enthusiasts…

Hiyori sighed. She had to stop her brain again of thinking every decision she had to take: "What would my mother pick?" She couldn't just simply pick one randomly and sign in. Mrs. Iki would consult in all possible manners all the options her daughter had and would pick the one that gave the better looks for society. "But what do I want? Why I don't have any idea? Who am I?" Giving up, she dragged her feet to her classroom. There was the door. She put her hand in the tin plaque to slid it, but she just stood there, frozen. "Why do I do the things I do?".

The bell took her out violently from her thoughts. The first period had already ended, and her teacher would soon come out to the hallway through the other door. Hiyori took a big mouthful of air and opened the door with confidence; confidence that faded away as soon as she noticed the stares of every single of her classmates fixed upon her. It couldn't be true that the whole school had seen her the other day, could it?

Nervously, she approached to her desk and slid the chair, making much more noise than she expected. The stares of everyone had followed her throughout the way. The silence was almost absolute, disturbed only for the voices of the other students changing classrooms outside. It couldn't be possible that everyone had seen her jumping to the street and running away hand to hand with Yato, could it? She wondered if it was actually possible to feel this small, this many times in one single day, just like Alice would. "Take me with you, Cheshire Cat", she thought, and wondered why this Cheshire Cat on her mind had big bright blue eyes, and at the same time two figures stood right beside her spot.

"Well, Hiyori?" Yama spoke, "don't you think forgetting to tell us the fact that you have a boyfriend is kinda big of a deal?"

Suddenly Hiyori completely forgot about the fact everyone was staring silently at her. She went tomato red up to the tips of her hair and yelled.

"WHAT?!"

"Aw, c'mon, absolutely no one jumps like that and runs away from school for just any random person." Ami added.

"Y-you're wrong! T-t-that was…!" Ami y Yama emphasized the fact they were trying to pull some sense out of what she was saying, raising the brows. "He's my brother!" she could finally let out. Of course she didn't felt any relief when her friends showed in their faces they didn't believe a word. But what was she supposed to tell them? "SHRINE's guitarist came to look for me at school to thank me I jumped to the street to save him the other day and I ended up spending the entire day at the band's house, and just by chance meeting their producer"? She would surely end up at some psychiatric hospital, and it was pretty clear she was not insane. The blue-eyed Cheshire Cat at the very back of her head let out a tingling laughter, "we're all crazy here", and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Ami and Yama insisted again during recess, on the changing rooms and at the end of school day.

"There's absolutely nothing to tell!", Hiyori snapped, finally, completely exasperated, "we wanted everything to be a surprise to my parents so we simply didn't tell anyone we were planning this stuff!"

Yama was already halfway upset, and the tone Hiyori used ended up breaking the little composure she had. "Whatever you told your parents it's not gonna work on me, Hiyori."

"Yama…" called Ami, concerned, trying to hold her friend from one shoulder.

"I wouldn't dare to assure that guy we saw matches anything you've told us about your brother, Hiyori, I'm not going to fall for that!"

"Yama, that's enough…" said Ami, almost in a whisper. Hiyori reached her limit. The classes had ended and she didn't had any other reason to stay there.

"I don't see why you should be falling for something, Yama-chan! That's the reality and in the case I was telling you a lie, I have the right to keep my secrets to myself, I have enough just with my mother sneaking into my life and I don't need to be spitting out explanations to my friends also!"

"Hiyori-chan!" Ami tried, but Hiyori was walking quickly to the gate already.

Her afternoon class had been a complete disaster. Ballet made Hiyori felt like a monkey on a tutu, and adding up the fact she was already mad wasn't making it better. Her classmates looked at her angrily when raising up her leg suddenly became a kick to the ribs of one of them, and the teacher decided to interrupt the class to give her five minutes to go to the bathroom to fresh up her face and recover the focus. Hiyori turned the handle of the faucet so hard she ended up with it on her hand and spent 10 minutes trying to make it fit in place again.

When she came back, the teacher sent her home right away. It wasn't like she was too bothered about it. Actually, Hiyori knew for sure she didn't had any kind of talent for any form of art.

She arrived home with her head low, almost didn't touched her food, and went straight up to her bedroom. This had been, without a doubt, the hardest and most tiring day of her life. However, no matter how much she wanted to fall asleep for the rest of the night, she still had to do her homework. She took her blazer off and placed it on the chair of her desk, took her briefcase and carefully took out its contents, spreading it over the top of the desk, more on routine than on intention. She suddenly looked around, interested, to all her belongings, clean and organized on her desk; despite sitting there every night during most of her life, somehow suddenly wasn't right. She couldn't recognize the meticulousness the person using that desk had for organizing absolutely every book and binder and notebook she needed, the pens, the stationary, the planer. All clean. All almost new. No notebook had any sign of use, no personal embellishment. Her pencils and pens were simple, sober, standard. Who lived in that room?

"Hiyori", she answered out loud, leaning on her chair's back, which felt aggressive against her back. "Hiyori lives here", she sighed, staring over her stuff, deciding where to begin. She knew that just one quick look to her planner would be enough to know that, but right when she was about to take it, a candy wrapper sticking out of the front bag of her briefcase took her attention away. She took it between her hands, and let out a small laugh. It was the wrapping of a banana flavored KitKat bar, that Hiyori thought until now nobody on this world ever bought and repeatedly before she had thought it didn't made any sense they even sold it. At the back, hurriedly written with spidery signs, was an email address.

"You do know how to use email, don't 'cha?", he had said. She scoffed. Tomorrow she would show that dumb guy that used movie quotes, whose aspect didn't made any sense and whose mood changed every 0,3 seconds, that she could send properly an email. She placed the wrapper on her wallet carefully, stretched out her arms interlocking her fingers, and opened her planner.


	7. Liar

**TRACK 7.**

 **Liar - The Sex Pistols.**

The commercial zone near Hiyori's school was two parallel avenues connected with each other through small pedestrian streets and regular streets. Hunched in the shadows behind a vending machine -FOR THE THIRD TIME, the store clerks in that zone were a pain in the ass, Yato waited intently the right moment to get out of his hideout.

Hiyori almost died from a heart attack when she saw Yato walking casually by her side after receiving a light knock in her shoulder.

"WHAT TH…" Yato placed a finger over his lips to indicate she needed to be quiet. He again was wearing the scarf, the cap and sunglasses. Hiyori spoke in a normal volume, "What on earth are you doing here?"

"Well, I asked around in a lot of veterinaries if anyone had cured a broken donkey, but nobody could tell me anything, so I thought it was quicker to come check at the street to avoid you jumping in front of another car", smiled Yato mischievously. The girl looked at him, annoyed and amused at the same time.

"I don't write you in a couple of days and the first thing you do is coming to hide at the street waiting for me to get out of school?"

"I can't believe you forgot to write me back!" he cried, faking a pained face, "I'm so charming that anyone would write the next day!"

Hiyori began to walk faster.

"Bye, Yato!"

"Hey, hey, wait!" He said, reaching her, "I j-just…" He blushed suddenly, making Hiyori to blush a little, as a reflex, "wanted t'know if I didn't have ended getting you into more troubles after what happened. If that's the reason why you've not contacted me…"

Hiyori interrupted him with a loud sigh.

"I actually was thinking of telling you everything that happened in just one e-mail after things settled down a bit, that's why I haven't written."

"So you _did_ got into trouble", added Yato, a bit disheartened.

"Just a few…" Cut Hiyori again, "it's really not the time to tell you about it and we're on the middle of the street anyways, it's really not a short story."

"I have all the time in the world!"

What was going on with him?

"Why are you being so insistent? This is just simple teenage girl drama, and you are…" She stopped herself, realizing her entire facade could crumble at the slightest mistake, "apparently a really important person."

Yato doubted for a second, before answering.

"If this is something I caused, I simply want to know if there's any way I can help you solve it."

It was really hard for Hiyori to believe this person who was near the edge of becoming maddening was capable of writing that music. It was too absurd.

"Listen, I promise I will tell you everything that has been going on, but right now I have a class to make it to and I'm already kind of late."

"Wow, so you study after school also? You keep yourself busy, huh?"

"Well, it's not like I'm actually too good with that…" She muttered.

"What's the class about?"

"Painting…"

Yato looked at her in disbelief.

"I don't see you dying to get there", he said, suggestively. Hiyori stopped walking suddenly. He was right. She looked straight down to her feet, thinking. It was something she felt she didn't had the talent for, anyways. The headmaster had told her to make time for a club at school, anyways. Why not just simply forget about painting?

* * *

Yato looked at her from a distance. She was bowing down, apologizing again and again with a teacher with loose long straight hair, outside a really tiny studio buried deep in a corner of a shopping mall. When she returned, somehow she looked calmer.

"This is going to sound a little bit crazy", explained Hiyori whilst getting down the stairs, "but I actually feel like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders."

"Why do you do this?"

"Huh?"

"Running around one place to another with hellish schedules, taking lessons of things you don't even like or care about at all". Hiyori tried to answer, but only a short "hm" came out of her lips. "God, being so young the last thing you should be doing is wasting your time in things like that."

Hiyori couldn't say a word after they left the mall and walked a bit along the avenue, apparently aimlessly. The sun was setting, the lights would be turned on soon, and Hiyori had time to spare.

"T-thanks", she said.

Yato halted, surprised. "Aren't you polite by reflex?"

"Says the person who wipes his sunglasses clean when he's nervous"

 _Touche_. Yato laughed, and he was surprised about the sound of his own laugh, about the tension in his jaw and the leant back position of his head. "I have no idea why are you thanking me for, Hiyori, but if you really want to do something for me, I have a favor to ask you".

* * *

The girl began doubting this had been a smart idea when they got down the subway in a part of town a bit far from her usual zone. People didn't say a lot of pretty things about this area, and she wasn't even sure of what would happen once they arrived at his house. However, she couldn't help but trust. For some reason to think Yato could do something to harm her felt in her mind really unnatural. Talking to him was easy, a bit unnerving because of his arrogant behavior from time to time and his awful proneness to make really stupid jokes; walking beside him made crossing streets on a neighborhood as dangerous looking as that one felt as safe as walking up and down her house stairs. Between silences, Hiyori tried to unravel this situation in her head, why being with him felt that good? Where was the extra effort she usually had to make to interact with other people? She was used to watch carefully and listen to every inflexion and pause the other person made to know exactly what to say. Yato changed and flowed like water, and she just let him pass along. She answered when he spoke, said things when they crossed her mind and kept silent if the talk was over. What was this?

They stopped before entering an alley and Hiyori could see the stairs leading down to his basement. Yato searched for the keys in his pocket, blabbing something about a TV commercial about kittens he had seen last night that had him puzzled. Right before twisting the knob, his face turned pale and turning around, he sticked his back to the door with his arms spread, like a lizzard.

"Yato, what are you doing?"

Notoriously nervous, he stuttered.

"I-I-I don't have n-nothing to offer you for a d-drink!"

"Huh?"

"Can you go buy… drinks?" Yato smiled, but Hiyori couldn't ignore the fact that all of this was pretty weird.

"O…kaaay" the girl turned around, "Oh, there's a vending machine right there!" She began climbing the few stair steps, searching for some change in her coat, when Yato's yell startled her.

"NOOO, NOT THAT ONE!"

"But why?!"

"I don't like those!"

"…the hell are you talking about?!"

"I want those from there!"

"But I have to walk the entire street!"

"Just go!"

"I don't understand, what kind of drink you want?"

"I don't give a… it doesn't matter! just GO!"

Minutes later, Hiyori came back annoyed from the farthest vending machine to Yato's house with two canned drinks. He was a really strange fellow.

* * *

When she made it back to the alley the first thing she saw was the huge pile of black trash bags piled up in front of the stairs. She made her way between the remaining space in order of not touching anything and stepping carefully knocked on the distressed door three times. Yato opened immediately.

"Hiyori! I was about to go searching for ya!"

"Yato, what's up with all this bags?"

"Noth…! I mean yes, I wonder! Fuckin' weird people!" He laughed nervously and right away he pulled her inside from her arm, closing the door behind.

Hiyori made herself confortable in the couch and looked suspiciously around. She knew pretty well the behavior of boys this age. On the days he was being careful and neat, her brother left at least one drawer opened in the kitchen, and his room always showed signs of his way in it. This flat was strangely tidy. With the corner of her eye, she saw Yato working his soul out in the kitchen.

"Is it okay if I brought you iced tea?" She asked out loud, doubtful.

"Oh, don't worry, Hiyori. I'm actually not thirsty."

Unbelievable.

* * *

A few moments later, Hiyori was feeling incredibly embarrased about being laughed off by Yato.

"D-don't laugh! It's incredibly unconfortable running into Yama-chan pretty much everywhere when all she does is sticking her nose up high and leave!" She whined, making a sad face, to which Yato stopped laughing slowly, but kept staring at her with a smile.

"Now I get why you haven't written!"

Hiyori had agreed to tell him everything that had happened, and after trying to persuade him not to make a list of all the lies she had told in those past days, she also proceeded to tell him about her friends and the annoying attitude Yama had taken, mumbling bad things about her when she was sure she could hear, and the fact Ami was still trying to middle between them.

"And not just that, apparently no matter how I try to dispell rumours at school, people is coming up with stories about a life I didn't even knew I had!"

Yato finally stretched his arms and legs, and looked at the ceiling, thoughtful.

"People's really a pain in the ass, no?"

"What do you mean?"

"Like that friend of yours, that Yama girl. I kinda get she's mad 'bout you lying and stuff, but going around thinking people owe you an explanation with full detail about their lives is hella damn annoying. Is she always like that?"

Hiyori thought about it for a moment. Yama had always been the kind of impertinent friend they usually ended up getting out of her own troubles, but aside from that she was really a loyal person, capable of running wherever needed in order to help them out. Suddenly Hiyori felt extremely wrong.

"Yama-chan is always paying attention to what Ami-chan and myself need", muttered, "I suppose that's why she's so apprehensive when she finds out about something she's not aware of."

Yato scoffed loudly and Hiyori looked at him with furrowed eyebrows. In that precise moment he seemed cold, distant and completely different to the guy she thought she knew a few days ago.

"What is she expecting to get in exchange?"

"Huh?"

"People is not just good because they can. Proof is she got mad because you're not showing her the reality she wants to see."

Yato was alone. Hiyori looked around. He had deliberately cut himselff off people. Was this about a discussion he had in the past with Viina? The one who made her resign the band? The girl looked at him, sitting with his eyes looking straight to the front, searching solitude to be able to put his pieces together again after a painful break. Hiyori sighed, why did her chest began to hurt? Suddenly Yato seemed to get off a trance, and looked straight into her eyes. His face was different again. This time it was the soft and kind face he had back then in the park after running away form her teachers. He smiled sweetly.

"I'm nobody to decide and judge over your friends, Hiyori. What you think is perhaps more accurate. It's entirely up to you if you go and fix things up with her or you keep on figuring it out by yourself."

Hiyori thought again for a minute.

"What would you do?"

"I would let her rot in hell for the rest of her life" said Yato with a straight up deadly deep voice, and his eyes lit up with something unknown to the girl. Seeing her confused stare he smiled again and got off the couch, walking towards the bottom of his basement. All of a sudden Hiyori asked, curious:

"What was what you wanted to ask me?"

Yato came back with his guitar on one hand and a bunch of crumpled sheets on the other.

"I want you to listen to this"

The couch sunk again under the renewed weight, and Yato began playing. He showed her one tune, and the complementary riff. Hiyori listened intently and threw questions here and there. As minutes went by, Yato became more and more concentrated in what he was doing, speaking less and less. Intrigued, Hiyori noticed his face changing again, this time shining internally with some kind of strange, mesmerizing energy. "How 'bout this?" he would ask suddenly, and she would notice the slight differences between one idea and the other, commenting which had been better. Yato discovered himself making small crosses over the notes instead of furious strikes, shifting the melody over the same idea. He ended with a solid sketch of a song, coherent, fluid, fresh, completely new. The guy took the paper between his hands, staring at it as if it worth a billion dollars. Then he looked at her as if he just discovered how to make fire.

* * *

Hiyori tried to dissipate the stupid smile in her face and breathed deep to get rid of that strange fast heartbeat that she was having all the way back home after Yato had seen her off at the station. It had been extremely hard to shake him off for some reason; she couldn't understand why he couldn't stop offering to buy things for her. He tried to buy her a cake in a store near the station simply because she had stared at it, and it was twice as hard to convince he didn't needed to invite her dinner. He agreed to see her off at the station only when Hiyori threatened with not writing ever, and she apologized later with the fact his parents still didn't knew she had ended her painting lessons that same afternoon and they weren't going to allow one more unjustified delay. The sight of Yato staring at her behind the station entrance bars, waving his hand off, was precisely what kept her stupid smile, and somehow when she noticed her face seemed made of rubber, going back to the smile when she tried to chage the expression, made her smile even more, had she lost her head?

"Something good happened to you?", asked a familiar voice right beside her. The sunset light reddened the blond hair and ambar eyes of the boy who reached her at the grove walk in front of the station.

"Tendou-kun!" said Hiyori, feeling lucky, "It's really nice seeing you!"

"Call me Yukine, please!", he answered, with a too sugary voice. Something inside the girl pieced together with a click, and she reacted with caution.

"What brings you around here, Yukine-kun?" There was it again. The extreme attention. Her nerves activating. The quick thinking before any reaction. She surprisingly found herself wanting to be with Yato.

"A friend lives around, but I was already going." After seeing the surprised face Hiyori did by learning Yukine had friends so close to her house, the boy asked, "Where are you coming from, Iki-san?"

Ah, there was it again. She hadn't noticed that tone the last time she spoke with him, what was he planning? Why did his voice sounded so… _dangerous_?

"Please, call me Hiyori." She didn't know if it was okay to continue. Why did she felt it wasn't a good idea to tell him she had seen Yato? After a brief pause, she continued. "I actually think this is really funny, I just saw Yato a while ago."

Almost immediately, Hiyori regretted saying that when she saw Yukine's grin. In wasn't a real smile. His whole face was a facade, and she felt getting nervous about not being able to see what was lying behind.

"Yato? it is indeed funny, Hiyori." He let out a laugh -"Fake", Hiyori thought right away, and then he said, "where did you saw him? I hope he didn't actually followed you around like a shadow, the way he planned."

"Planned?"

Yukine got closer to her, venomously.

"He hasn't stopped talking about you since he gave you his email. It was actually a torture listening to him complaining about you not writing. Yesterday he decided going to look for you. I tried to make him realize it was a stupid idea, but I can see he actually did found you the way he wanted."

Why was he talking like that? Hiyori decided to leap forward and face him. What was this brat planning?

"Actually, Yukine-kun", Hiyori made sure to state her phrase as precise as possible, "he met with me after school and we spend the afternoon at his flat."

Yukine stopped suddenly.

"Oh, I see", he looked straight into her eyes, with a fiery spark. On that same note, Yukine asked, "did you guys had fun?"

"Lots, Yato is working in new material and he showed me some ideas for new songs"

Hiyori could see, even when the light of the surroundings was getting dimmer, that in the eyes of the boy was building up anger and alarm. A swift look below made her aware the knuckles of Yukine were almost white.

"Listen", he said, with a completely different voice, no suga-coating, no disguises, "I don't really get what are you planning to do, but you can begin to drop your little act with me."

"I don't know what you're talking about", she said, defensively, with a flat voice. Yukine got even closer to her, menacingly. Hiyori didn't moved an inch.

"You know quite well I don't swallow shit about what you say. The rest is also very wary about you, but Yato is much too naive to notice."

Hiyori began to feel anxious.

"I don't know exactly what are you planning, but if you already went joyfully to his house, it means this has gone way too far."

"I don't know what you're talking about", she repeated. Yukine shook his head, furious.

"Stop playing dumb already!"

A third voice got them off each other's focus, and Hiyori looked back at the station, feeling a squeeze in her chest when she saw the black haired guy running towards them, with her pink scarf on his hand.

"Hey, guys!" he waved, merrily, from afar. Hiyori was about to answer, relieved he was there, when she felt a strong pull in her briefcase.

To her utter horror, Yukine emptied the contents of it in the floor right in front of them, in spite Hiyori trying to get it back at any cost.

"What the heck do you think you're doing, brat?!" Shouted Yato, rushing to the place, finding Hiyori trying to pick up her stuff as fast as she could.

She couldn't let him see it.

Yukine tossed her briefcase aside, and Yato looked at him furious, while he kneeled beside Hiyori to help her pick up the mess. "What the hell got into you, asshole?!"

Yukine's answer was a devilish look at Hiyori and a stomp over her composition notebook… and a CD case. The girl's fingers were just millimeters off being crushed against the ground by the angry boy's foot.

"YUKI-!"

"PAY ATTENTION JUST ONCE IN YOUR GODDAMN LIFE, YATO, FUCK!" Exploded Yukine, and pointed at his foot, lifting it from Hiyori's stuff, who was frozen in fear.

Yato's shaking hand picked up the CD. He looked at her with wide open eyes. The same eyes minutes before had looked at her as if she was one of the world's greatest wonders now were questioning her, analyzing her, trying to understand.

"Hiyori?" Dared to ask Yato. The stinging in Hiyori's eyes finally translated into ashamed, angry tears. She quickly stuffed her things into the briefcase, sobbing.

"I'm really sorry" she said with a faint voice, and left the place running. The street lights began to flicker.

Yato followed her whith the sight, with SHRINE's album in one hand, and her pink scarf in the other. He barely listened Yukine talking.

"Hey, dude, leave her. We're much better like this, she could've been a crazy fan or something worse. I think is best for the time being if you stay at home with us…"

Yato refused to talk to Yukine throughout the first week he spent on the house with everyone.

* * *

 _Hi everyone! Is been a while! I want to thank everyone who has been leaving reviews, those are the writers' fuel, really. This time I just want to give a slight warning. This story is still ongoing in spanish, so you just need to wait for me to translate it -It takes time, unfortunately. So the reason I'm writing this is because this time it might take me a bit more time to get something done since I'm finishing my study time in japan and it's time for me to get back home. I will be back at the end of september so I'll try my best to write something during that time and not let you all waiting for ages until I upload something, but without fail I'll post something during october. Until then, please be safe and happy. I love you all!_


	8. Psycho

**TRACK 8**

 **Muse - Psycho.**

"Ami-chan, Yama-chan, wait", Hiyori reached out to her Friends while crossing the main yard. Yama huffed in annoyance and made the gesture of leaving, but Ami held her from the arm, forcing her to face Hiyori.

"I want to… specially with you, Yama-chan, I…" doubted Hiyori, twirling her knuckles around her briefcase handle.

The long silence made the girl to look up to her friends, thanking the fact they were not rushing or put pressure in her for apologizing, which was already really hard for her. Ami had a concerned stare, while Yama tried to keep her annoyed face, but she didn't move an inch even with Hiyori doubting right there.

 _"What you'd do?"_

 _"I would let her rot in hell…"_

Bits of her conversation with Yato days before came to her mind, and to her horror, they were far from making her feel better. The memories of that afternoon, those intense blue eyes, so expressive, letting her see from his comfortableness to his confusion to mistrust, the only thing they caused was that tears began trailing down from her eyes, leaving wet traces on her cheeks. A wave of anger and embarrassment made her weep, scolding herself for not being in control of her own emotions. She tried to keep talking but she was actually making an awful job at that. Her friends tensed up.

"H-hey!" Said Yama, baffled, "D-don't cry! It's actually not that big of a deal! Apology accepted!"

"Ow, Hiyori!" Sighed Ami, and squeezed her in an embrace. "We're really really sorry too!"

Yama placed a hand in one of Hiyori's shoulder. "I'm really sorry too, Hiyori-chan."

The three girls walked to their classroom while Hiyori wiped away her tears. Somehow they had thought those were apology tears, and she wasn't going to correct that mistake. She was actually relieved to not having to give any explanation.

During lunch, Hiyori managed to fill the gaps on her story for SHRINE, but she ended up telling them about her little run-away with "Yuuto", the cruelty Yukine had revealed a white lie she just slightly mentioned – and that fortunately Ami and Yama didn't asked about, and the "punishment" imposed by the headmaster.

"Wow", sighed Yama, overwhelmed, "well, if it serves you of anything, my judo club still has some spots opened."

"If I go to my mother telling her I'm entering judo club I'll surely sent her straight to the hospital, but thanks, tho'", said Hiyori, lowering her head.

"That's right, you need to really ponder your options", said Ami, with a finger on her chin. "And about this dude, Yuuto-san, you said? I'm sure if he really cares about you, he'll listen whatever you have to say", se added with a smile.

"He has to choose!" yelled Yama, passionate, "It's either his friend or you!"

"…And that's why you don't have a boyfriend, Yama-chan", sighed Ami, "That's so not appropriate"

"Hey!"

"I actually don't think is so simple as telling him to pick one of us", said Hiyori. In that moment the bell announcing the end of lunch break rang, and the girls stood up, heading back to their classroom. Hiyori smiled. She finally had her friends back, but she couldn't stop feeling wrong; she still kept lying to cover things that were not so easy to say, anyways. But what else could she do? Tell everything just the way it was?

"Hey, guys?", called Hiyori, and the three stopped walking in the aisle, "would you believe me if I told you I knew SHRINE's members and I spent one afternoon with the guitarist?"

Ami and Yama looked at her with eyes wide open. Then they broke down in laughter.

"Whatever you say, Hiyori-chan!", let out Yama, sarcastically, and they kept walking with Hiyori a little behind, with her head sunk between her shoulders.

"That's what I thought…"

* * *

"It would be good if you'd get your ass to the kitchen to help for a change!" had said Daikoku some point within the week. He knew what he really wanted to see was some kind of reaction in him. There were five rooms in the house, but lately they were using just two. Yato had been locked up in the room he occupied when he was living there at the beginning, which was around the same size his whole basement in downtown was. He had tried to leave on the first days, but Daikoku had stopped him. He hadn't left his room since. Kofuku had come to talk to him regularly through the door, when she also realized he wasn't eating properly.

"Yatty-chan, you haven't eaten one bite again…" Kofuku was saying today, "we're sorry things have to be this way, but we have to keep you safe. This time luckily nothing happened, but if you were here living with us there had been no need for you to be exposed like that…"

Yato listened to her in his usual spot, sitting by the little table near the window who showed directly the blue cover of the pool, smoking. His hair was a mess and the blanket over his shoulders made him look like an owl on his perch. He could listen to her clearly, he knew what he wanted to say, but he just stayed there, unmoving. An ocean of simultaneous thoughts flooded through him: the deadline, how long he had been on that house, the shame-filled face of Hiyori, Yukine, that stupid brat, Hiyori, the new song he had left on the basement, the fact he didn't felt like eating anyhting, Hiyori, she still had his email, would she have written? Probably not, how easy would it be to just smash his skull against the window…

Yato smashed the cigarette butt with more violence than needed, burning his fingertips and getting them dirty with the pile of ashes from several days. He actually hated smoking, but nicotine was able to suppress his constant anxiety peaks and slow down his mind a bit. He was sure it killed brain cells, but that was okay. The only thing those little bastards did was idiotic thoughts that paralyzed him and deemed him unable to finish anything.

The magenta shine on that girl's eyes came back to his head with the strength and precision of a baseball bat and Yato hunched, hugging his knees, burying his face in the boney bumps.

"If you saw me like this, you'd surely think I'm a straight up loser", he thought, at the same time scolding himself for thinking that way, and simultaneously remembering that afternoon in his basement, where ideas were flowing, organized, where he looked at her eyes and everything was silent, where all the pieces fell into place perfectly.

He got up from his seat, almost knocking the table in his way, ripping away the blanket from his shoulders, his mind punishing him again for depending on a highschooler he had just met a few weeks ago, and for letting things to come to this point. He opened the bedroom's door, releasing the door lock, and he still could see Kofuku walking away hallway down, giving up. The sound of the door made her look behind, and seeing Yato made her face glow.

After receiving the bubblegum pink tornado on his arms, he looked at her, smiling.

"How can it be that we haven't had a rehearsal if we're all here?"

"I'll call everyone immediately!" sung Kofuku, and ran through the hallway like a butterfly.

* * *

Yato smashed his face over the kotatsu, hours later, his hair still damp from the shower he took after the practice… or whatever that had been. Daikoku growled angrily, asking him to stop getting the table dirty, and Kofuku slipped an arm over his shoulders, hugging him, speaking with the softest voice.

"Yatty-chan, c'mon, relax, OK? Not all rehearsals have to be good, much less after all that time", his friend's attempts to lift his mood only made his frustration bigger, and he turned his head to the other side. Yukine and Daikoku had turned on the videogame station and were having fun shooting the other team in an online match. At the current situation, Yato was unable to understand how a game of that kind allowed them to relax after that sucky rehearsal. He had been completely unable to concentrate, he kept missing his entrances, failed notes, and yelled in frustration about not being able to put two coherent ideas together. They decided to try the next day, although nobody really felt more calm. Hugged by Kofuku, Yato sniffed: "I wish I could concentrate like before."

"Hey, man, take your time," let out Daikoku, smiling. Seeing Yato out of his bedroom had relieved him somehow, "there'll be something to bring the kazillion-dollar Yato back."

"Bring a slut dressed as a schoolgirl, seems he likes that kind of shit" scoffed Yukine.

"Yuki…", Kofuku tried to reprimand him. Yato didn't even flinched with his words. The couple was completely aware that he was determined to ignore him as long as possible; but they were also sure Yukine said hurtful things on purpose, resented about receiving the cold shoulder, and they knew this was going to blow out really soon. Unfortunately, the teenager kept talking.

"Look at him, Kofuku! He's being pathetic on purpose for us to feel guilty about opening his eyes to the truth of his girlfriend", Yato blushed to the tip of his ears, but didn't answered. Daikoku gripped the controller with more strength than necessary, counting on the seconds. Yukine didn't looked away from the screen. "Anyways, I sent her ass back home and whatever she was planning to do will not happen, what a ridiculous thing to say she didn't had any idea of who we were!"

"So what?" said a harsh voice rising up from the kotatsu. Yato straightened up, and pierced Yukine with a cold glare. "Am I not able to even pick my own friends anymore?"

"Bah, accept it, you don't even know who to trust and since you think you can't trust us since what happened with Viina, you go and search for the first person to come across you". Daikoku and Kofuku closed their eyes at the same time. Something was indeed about to blow up.

"Viina, Viina! Goddamn it!" Yato made the table rattle under his fist. "I would really like for you to stop bringing her up every chance you guys have! I'm sick of all this, Yukine! What the fuck y'think you're getting with reminding me time and time again it was my fault she left?!" After the yelling, Yukine turned off the console, furious.

"FOR YOU TO DEEP-THINK ABOUT IT, MAYBE!"

"DEEP-THINK ABOUT WHAT?"

"HOW PATHETIC IT IS FOR YOU TO DRAG YOUR ASS AROUND SOME GOOD FOR NOTHING BRAT TO OBTAIN A BIT OF VALIDATION EVEN THOUGH YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT HER!"

Yato took Yukine by the arm with violence and led him outside. Daikoku made the intent of standing up, but Kofuku stopped him putting a hand delicately on his arm. Smiling sweetly, she made a negative movement with her head.

"Yatty-chan would never hurt Yuki", she said, with a spark on her eyes, "he's not the same as before."

Daikoku sat down again and looked outside, worried.

Outside, Yato practically threw Yukine against the blue sports car and looked at him with rage, before starting to remove the covering canvas. He took the keys out of his pocket and removed the locks. He opened the driver's door.

"Get in", he said. Yukine kept standing next to the car, crossing his arms, "I SAID GET IN!", insisted Yato with a growl, and Yukine walked around the car reluctantly, closing the door behind him with a bang.

"Where are we going?" he asked, not showing any trace of the attitude he showed seconds before, feeling nervousness building up. Normally, when a fight got to this levels, Yato was the first one avoiding it, usually by leaving. Something had changed.

Yato put his key on the slot by the wheel and turned the switch on. He looked at Yukine straight in the eye and saw him revolve on his seat. This kind of energy was something the kid had never saw in him. Without answering to the question, Yato turned the stereo on and searched for an unexistent station. Static filled the car's cabin and Yukine looked at him, confused. Yato didn't broke visual contact while turning up the static's volume to an almost unbearable level. The blond turned his face into a pained one while covering his ears.

"Does it hurt?", Yato yelled.

Yukine looked at him in disbelief while he turned the volume up even more. Even Yato's face was showing signs of pain.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" Yelled Yukine, getting his friend's hand off the volume button with an upwards slap, turning the volume down and punching the off button.

"That was my brain", Yato said. The glare in his eyes made it hard to believe he wasn't telling the truth. He turned the stereo on again and searched a station of calm music. A violin quartet caressed the notes sweetly. "This is my brain when I'm with her."

Yukine smashed his forehead against the car's board with a grunt.

"Dammit, dude! Obviously you have feelings for the girl but there's no need to be so cheesy, you disgust me!"

Yato blushed instantly.

"THAT'S NOT IT!" he kept blabbing seeing the skeptical stare Yukine gave him, "Don't you understand, Yuki? THE WHOLE TIME something is going through my stupid brain and I'm not able to filter everything… until I met her, at least…. For the first time in a long time there's silence… I can focus. I know I probably shoulda' been more careful but…"

Yukine opened the car's door.

"I already knew you were an idiot", mumbled Yukine, bitterly, "but I wasn't aware you were this fucking crazy."

Yato chuckled.

"I guess I am a bit crazy."

Yukine got off the car and turned around, talking with his hand on the edge of the door.

"Do whatever you want, ass", he passed the other hand through his hair, ruffling it, "but think about the fact that whatever happens today onwards would be entirely her fault, and therefore yours, for involving her where she shouldn't be."

Yukine closed the door, and Yato got the window down before the kid could go far.

"Say, Yukine, what would you think if I was in your place and Suzuha was Hiyori?", Yukine froze at the spot, "what would've happened if when you invited him over I had showed the same attitude with him that you showed with her… stepping over him, making him feel humiliated?"

"It's not the same thing…"

"Oh, really? Because it seems to me the circumstances are actually similar, Suzuha comes here all the time and only you know who he is…"

"But I trust him!" he said, hot-headed, turning around again and glaring at Yato with furrowed brows.

"And I trust you. I also trust Hiyori."

Yukine snorted and kept walking.

"I would have smashed your face in that moment."

"Apparently the one who's in love is someone else", sung Yato in an annoying tone, typical of him.

He immediately got the window up, turned the car's engine on and pushed play in his stereo's CD player. While he turned around the fountain to get off the house ground, he watched Yukine's face turn red as a tomato, but he couldn't listen the "FUCK OFF!" yell, nor see him throw a handful of gravel that didn't made it to his car.

* * *

"You're sure you don't need any help from us, Hiyori-chan?", asked Yama. Her and Ami were waving Hiyori off at the school gate.

"That's very nice of you, guys, but the deal with my brother was taking care of it myself." Said Hiyori, smiling apologetically, getting ready for an afternoon of hunting event halls, banquet services, florists, invitations…

The idea alone was overwhelming, but she had to begin somewhere. But Hiyori actually knew this was the perfect excuse to stop thinking about all that happened and get distracted from the constant jump to her mind of that pair of bright blue eyes appearing out of nowhere, in completely random situations, passing through any thought. While she was collecting phone numbers in the commercial district, she tried not to pay attention to her surroundings, that talked about him, that was trying for her to remember him painfully with every detail. It was completely inexplicable, even absurd. How could it be so hard to stop seeing someone who you'd barely knew?

An anger wave filled her starting from her stomach to the last fiber of her fingers, cooling them until they began to ache and she had to stop the pen's movement that was still collecting phone numbers, even with her mind way too far from there. The girl kept walking, trying with all her will to blink until making the growingly bothersome sting at the corner of her eyes to go away. One rub in the eyes with her fists, a bit of a shake with her head, and she was ready to hunt again with a falcon's eye some other place to collect information. She searched around, at the other sidewalk, trying to sharpen her sight. Maybe if she crossed the street…

She had barely made that choice, and she was shifting her feet to go there, when a loud honk made her jump like never before in her life, and with the heart pounding hurtfully looked at the damn crazy person who had smashed the horn of the blue car right next to her… an electric blue sports car… she had seen that car somewhere…

The tinted window of the co-pilot seat got down slowly, and it wasn't even halfway down when from the inside of that Subaru WRX came out an extremely familiar voice.

"What happened, Hiyori? Saw a ghost?"

She would recognize that voice anywhere.

"Yato!" Hiyori hurriedly came near to the space left from the window, almost sticking her head in the inside of the car, "what are you doing here?"

"Isn't that obvious?" he said, giving her a flashing smile, "I'm looking for people without a cellphone to put up an exhibition in a museum."

"Ha-ha, very funny", she said, stoic, "does Daikoku-san knows you stole his car?"

The face Yato did couldn't have been funnier, and Hiyori almost couldn't hear his reply from the laughter attack she had seeing it.

"Just for you to be aware, miss", he said, crushing his chest with a hand, indignant, "this is MY car." Hiyori let out an incredulous sound, and Yato snorted, exasperated, "Are you getting on or not?"

She smiled and opened the co-pilot's door. She sat down, put her briefcase on the floor between her ankles and buckled her seatbelt.

"Where are we going, Toretto?" Hiyori asked, still smiling. Yato looked at her from head to toe, almost in disbelief. Inside of his head, at that time was nothing but silence. Without answering, his face turned into a mischievous smirk, and looking to the front, he hit the gas.

* * *

"Who are those?" asked Hiyori, dipping one French fries in a plastic pot filled with dressing.

"Red Hot Chilli Peppers -d'you really didn't know this place?" Asked Yato, incredulous, taking one of the French fries of the bag she had.

The crisp-clean mat below Hiyori's feet squealed when she shifted one of them, seeing them with a little smile. She had been asking him continuously the names of the bands playing the songs on his car's stereo random setting, and Yato answered each band's name with the patience and passion of a good teacher; he was indeed more concerned about the fact she had never been in that park in particular. It was a charming spot buried in Tokyo's bay, in which throughout the years portions of land had been placed in order to be able to build more things. In front of them, like a cutout against the sunset light, they could see the shape of the Diamond and Flower ferris wheel, and Yato insisted to stay until the lights were lit. Meanwhile, they just sat in the car listening music.

Yato relaxed his back against the door, with the window down to allow the smoke of his cigarette to go out. Hiyori looked at him. They hadn't really gotten into the subject.

"I'm sorry" she said, simply. Yato froze for an instant, but didn't said anything for a while. He smiled sadly, looking to the front. She couldn't see the expression in his eyes.

"How long had you knew?" he asked, finally, doubting before continuing, "did you saved me from that accident because I was a member of SHRINE?"

Hiyori doubted too. She actually wasn't sure Yato was going to believe her.

"To be honest, I hadn't heard about you until after the accident."

"I don't know if that helps me or it's actually making me feel worse" he said, laughing a bit bitterly. He had relaxed again completely. "Actually, I think the one who needs to apologize here is me… Yukine… he's…"

"Chill out", cut Hiyori, shaking her head a little, "Yukine-kun was just a bit defensive."

"And I really don't know why to be like that with you, but it was indeed wrong… oh, by the way!" he said, and leaned to the back of the car, getting a pink scarf and Hiyori's CD, "I didn't had the change of getting those back to you."

After a shy "thanks" from Hiyori, Yato returned to the topic.

"Hey, I know it's not like a big deal but, in case you want, we can invite you over to a rehearsal…"

"COME AGAIN?!"

* * *

 _I know, I'm an awful person and I'm sorry sooo sorry for letting this fall behind out of nowhere! I promise I will keep updating and thank you all for reading!_


	9. Piano man

**TRACK 9.**

 **Piano Man – Billy Joel.**

It wasn't until she wore again her recently returned scarf that she noticed one of Yato's most unnerving traits: his perfume.

She couldn't quite place her finger over what it was, because it didn't seem like something store-bought. And it simply seemed to impregnate in everything he could lay his hands on, even faintly, but consistent nevertheless. During all that night, Hiyori was practically burying her nose on the pink fabric. Something in it was intriguing, intoxicating, even dangerous, and yet it was just a simple mixture of completely common smells, once she could sort of figure it out without feeling completely dumb or with that tickling sensation of rocks in her stomach. She could smell a bit of the cigarette's tobacco plus one or two different kinds of candy and junk food, along with some sort of body soap, shampoo, and – surprisingly, fabric softener; and with all that, a little something that simply could be associated with him. An unmistakable note that had the power of standing all her hairs. When she realized what a simple smell was doing to her, she decided to go to sleep with a huff, trying to forget how hard it had been to shake Yato off herself to avoid him taking her right to her doorstep in that flashy car.

Along the day things weren't much easier. Her mother and practically all the teachers had been constantly asking if she was running a fever. Of course, her completely reddened cheeks had absolutely nothing to do with being sick. She was wearing her scarf around her neck, covering her mouth and nose.

A very light snowfall made her breath to escape in the form of white clouds through the fabric, an Hiyori happily noticed that the smell seemed to reactivate with her breath's humidity. She guarded below one of the eaves of the stores by the station's door, waiting. Looking at the crowd, she suddenly felt paralyzed when she catched a glimpse of the blue-eyed smile of Yato in the distance, walking slowly, enjoying one of the last puffs of smoke of his cigarette. Today he looked quite different. He was wearing a long coat over a pair of jeans and a different sweatshirt, with a scarf around his neck, all in dark colors.

"Did you dressed all by yourself?" she let out. For an instant, he didn't knew how to react.

"I shoulda' left you go to Kofuku's house on your own."

Remembering Yukine's little scene, her face went pale.

"No, I'm sorry! Actually you… you look fine"

"Flirting with me is really low, Hiyori, I thought you were better than this" said Yato smiling slyly, doing an awful job at hiding the slight red tint his cheeks had taken.

"Can we go?" she sighed, in the midst between annoyed and completely confused about how she felt at that moment with the sole fact of seeing him in an outfit that could be considered at least something presentable and the involuntary reaction of her face -blushing too. Yato looked at her, somewhat lost.

"Let's go, but, are you feeling OK?" he said with a worried tone "looks like you're running a fever"

Hiyori began walking hurriedly, and Yato was walking with her within short time. The cold made them walk faster without talking, and soon - "too soon", thought Hiyori, before scolding herself internally and discarding the thought as quickly as she got it, they made it to Kofuku's house.

It was in that point that the girl realized this hadn't been a great idea, probably, according to what Yukine had said about not everyone being agree with involving her. Around the kotatsu were three faces watching her with different expressions. Yukine's one was total annoyance. Kofuku showed a conciliating smile and Daikoku was avoiding looking at her at all. Hearing Yato was taking air to begin talking, Hiyori took a step forward and made a deep bow.

"I'm so sorry!"

The three people at the table answered with a surprised interjection.

"What are you talking about, Hiyorin?" asked Kofuku, getting on her feet.

"I'm so sorry to have lied to you guys… I'm actually…" the other girl took her from the arm and softly led her to sit at the Kotatsu. Her kindness filled her with courage. It was about time to clean up some of her lies.

Not very long after, finishing to tell her story on detail in front of a cup of tea, Hiyori took a deep breath. Daikoku raised his fist, effusive.

"You finding us was destiny!"

"I'm so sorry to have doubted you, Hiyorin!" cried Kofuku, pouncing over her, pulling Hiyori into a hug.

Yato and Yukine's gazes crossed during a split second, before the teenager turned his face away, raising his nose. "It's now your turn ignoring me, Yukine?" thought Yato, and smiled to himself.

"Okay, that's enough already!" he said, standing up, "are we gonna begin or what?" Daikoku stood up too, and they left the room. Kofuku fluttered after them, and Hiyori waited a bit to let Yukine pass. The kid slid himself in front of her and stared at her with a piercing gaze that froze her right at the door. Yukine spoke with all the poison he could gather at that instant.

"I'm watching you" he said, simply, and followed the others. Hiyori felt her gut on the ground and a cold shiver ran through her back, until she heard Kofuku calling.

"Of course this house has a basement", Hiyori thought, ironically, as soon as they opened that place's door, revealing a room adequated entirely to achieve an ideal sound quality. Every wall was covered with carpet material, there were several speakers of different sizes located strategically around the place, a lot of microphones, the drum set, and all the instrument in their stands. Everything shone in chrome and silver and Hiyori searched for a spot to sit and admire the place in awe.

Yato, on the other hand, felt his body as light as a cloud and immediately began untangling the nest of cables on the floor before connecting everything in its place. If he could ignore the sudden sweat breakdown of his hands, he could feel the trace of an old emotion bubbling inside him. He identified that feeling at the moment he took his guitar in his hands and got the strap above his head. They were surrounded by an expectant silence.

Hiyori was just there, in front of them, she could feel the tension in the air when the three guys locked a stare.

Yato closed his eyes.

Black.

No noise. No strange thoughts eating his brain alive. No obsessions. He opened his eyes and glared swiftly to the brown haired girl sitting by the door before looking at Daikoku and Yukine. The first chord resounded not just all around, but also inside her brain, inside her stomach. She closed her eyes too, momentarily, and let herself sink in the melody. It was captivating, electrifying, even whithout the deep rich voice of Viina. When she opened her eyes again, she felt the little jump her heart did to the rhythm of music. Just in front of her, without any need of bending her gaze a bit, was Yato. His focused expression in the deepest part of the song gave him a seriousness she had never before seen in him; not even in the CD's photos. The solo was approaching -Hiyori knew the songs really well, and the guy closed his eyes shut, letting his fingers caress the guitar, shifting his expression again, this time giving the impression of deep meditation, as a wandering monk in the climax of his prayer, and Hiyori felt a pinch in her heart again. Ending the solo, Yato let his eyes brush over her, and that momentary contact was enough to lit her face in red. "Why does he looks so good?", she asked herself, mortified, trying to look somewhere else, without actually wanting. Kofuku watched her leaned in one of the biggest speakers, with her chin on her hand and an obnoxious smile glistening on her lips, with the stare of those who already know it all. Hiyori looked at her, confused, trying to discover what was so funny.

* * *

"That was amazing!" claimed Hiyori, getting close to them when they stopped to take a break. "You guys sound a lot better than the record!"

"That's the idea!" informed Yato, giving a big gulp to his beer can.

"It would actually sound a lot better if we had a singer!" huffed Daikoku, staring at Yato, who opted to walk around rising the beer can on the air, "I think it is time for us to begin thinking about making auditions, you animal!"

"Why don't you ask Kofuku-san? I mean, she's always here with you and she knows the songs…"

The laughter of the girl interrupted Hiyori, "You're too funy, Hiyorin!", she said. At the same time, Daikoku sighed, smiling, and denying silently with his head. Yukine scoffed, sitting a little far from everyone, sitting atop of an amp.

"Kofuku is good with people", Daikoku explained, "but she has absolutely no musical talent whatsoever."

"I rather see how handsome Kokki looks playing the drums!" said Kofuku, merrily.

"I actually think it's better like this, if we let her sing she'd surely break a speaker or something", said Yato, placing his guitar on the stand.

"Oh, c'mon, Yatty… that only happened once!"

"And you were sober… I don't even wanna think what would've happened if you had been drunk", said Yato again, leaning against the wall.

"Then… what about Yukine-kun or Daikoku-san?" suggested Hiyori again.

"Singing? No way!" let out Yukine, blushing.

"The rhythm section is actually very important, Hiyori. It gives everything a base; it's our job not to be distracted and if we can just do our thing, that's better", pointed Daikoku, explaining patiently.

"And what about Yato?"

All of a sudden everyone kept silent. Yato straightened up.

"Ha-ha! Yes, I wonder", he answered vaguely, trying to avoid the subject.

"Actually, Hiyorin", explained Kofuku, "Yatty-chan sings pretty good."

"He's a freakin' useless bum in everything else", said Daikoku, crossing his arms, "but respecting music, it's difficult to find someone who matches him."

"I would like to hear that one day", said Hiyori, giving Yato a sweet smile that made him blush up to his ears. He faked a sudden cough attack and climbed the stairs up, getting the cigarette box out from his pocket, leaving everyone in the room surprised.

* * *

He took a drag of his cigarette, slowly, tasting the acid flavor of the smoke and the nicotine on his lips when passing his tongue over them, cursing silently about forgetting his coat inside. For some reason, Hiyori's smile had been enough to give him a bolt of unbearable energy, and he had been about to leave running.

He was trying to figure what was making him behave like that, when his coat fell over his head.

"They say idiots don't catch colds, but put this on anyway", said Hiyori, with a hint of a laughter, shifting her coat herself. She admired Yato discreetly when he put the cigarette between his lips to be able to get the arms on the coat sleeves. She was still feeling the adrenaline rush of seeing them live, up close. "Yato", she called, softly. He just looked at her, "thank you for inviting me over."

"It's not a big deal", Yato raised a hand and scratched the nape of his neck, "thank you… for coming over."

"You really have not considered to be the singer?"

The guy let an honest laugh out, and stared at the night in front of him. After another drag to his cigarette, he answered slowly, thinking each word.

"I've always thought that even when you're able to do lotsa things at the same time, if you really want to be good at something, you have to really put your heart in it," he looked at her again. He continued explaining when he noticed her furrowed brows, thinking, "yes, I'm good at guitar and I can sing. But I think about it this way: the best band needs the best guitarist, and I can't be the best guitar player and the best singer at the same time. It's either one or the other."

Hiyori was so impressed about this way of thinking that weeks after she was still pondering his words. At that time, it meant breaking with absolutely everything she thought she knew and believed.

"I think" she muttered, "I'm beginning to understand what you said about my lessons."

Seeing her mood go gloomy, Yato began to blab.

"We- but- not everything is bad! I mean, from the large selection of lessons you have, there has to be something good, I mean, you have to like one even a bit! And that's okay! I'm just saying, the only one who should decide what to do with her time is yourself. What lesson you kept?"

"I still have to cancel my music lessons, but to be honest I would rather any other thing before seeing my teacher making his 'I told you' face…"

"Just hold on right there!" Yato cut her off, "You… d'you play?"

Hiyori giggled a bit.

"It's nothing, actually. A long time ago I discovered I have absolutely no talent to anything artsy."

"…But you play." The surprised look on Yato's face weirded her out a lot. He had even turned his body and seemed to be about to shake her from her shoulders at any minute.

"Y… yeah, you could say so."

"What instrument?"

"I… piano – Yato, wh…?" she couldn't ask him what was going through his head at the time, because he was already dragging her inside, back to the rehearsal basement. Yato took off his coat, throwing it carelessly and opening a little door in one of the room's ends, almost disappearing through it. After several loud clanks, deaf thumps of something heavy being dragged and several rolls of cable being thrown away randomly out of that little storage, Yato came out again, carrying a black long case and a solid metal structure that formed an X once unfolded. The guy placed the case in the floor carefully, and Hiyori came near him slowly, as if watching a wizard about to perform a magic trick on the stage. The locks were removed, revealing a shiny electric keyboard, that Yato placed carefully on top of the base, and then walked a few times around it, muttering.

"How was this…? How…? Oh!"

He finally found the plug he was looking, and walked again several times back and forth between the keyboard and the audio console, searching for the ideal sound. When he finished, when the keys were pulsed, it let out a similar sound to that of a lone piano right at the center of a huge hall. Yato dragged close one of the mics that they used to practice second voices during the rehearsal, and placed it in front of the chair, which he put at one side of the keyboard. He then stole the little bench of the drumset and sitted behind the key instrument, placing his hands over it, skillfully.

"I actually remember very little about this", he smiled, as an apology. After a few chord practices, he indicated Hiyori to sit on the chair with a stare. She straightened her skirt, fearful. He kept speaking while exercising his fingers over the keys, playing scales on repeat. "Say, Hiyori", she stared at him, "what's your mother's favorite song?"

The question took her unprepared. She raised her hand to her chin, thoughtful. She answered after a minute.

"No frontiers."

Yato stopped playing, and looked at her with agape mouth, totally surprised.

"Mary Black's No frontiers? – Well, that IS a surprise, are we really talking about the same person that pushes her philosophy about being an upper class lady and all that garbage down your throat?"

"…Mary Black?" said Hiyori, a little ashamed, "no, The Corrs."

Yato let out a big laughter. He was laughing a lot lately, he thought.

"Well, it's kinda the same thing, The Corrs only gave the song's popularity a boost", saying this, he tried different key combinations, muttering to himself, "A? No, D?... maybe B… no, C? There you are!"

The melody flowed from his fingers like water. It was unbelievable, Hiyori was completely overthrown with this guy's talent. How had she met him, again? His blue eyes were fixed on her.

"You surely know the lyrics… If life is a river…" Yato pointed to the mic with a stare, and Hiyori paralyzed. Was he singing? "c'mon! And your life is a boat…"

The girl approached the microphone with utter shyness, "and just like a water baby baby born to float…" Yato smiled, and urged her to continue, "And if life is a wild wind that blows way on high… And your heart is Amelia dying to fly… Heaven knows no frontiers…" Hiyori smiled singing the last phrase, "And I've seen heaven in your eyes…"

Yato retook the following verse. The atmosphere changed. Never, in all her life, Hiyori had been capable of thinking she would be able to understand so much with someone just by looking at them. Somehow, she knew what to do, when he was going to change and what did she had to do, and it didn't had nothing to do with the fact her mother had sang sung that tune to herself every time she was happy.

"Heaven knows no frontiers, and I've seen heaven in your eyes…"

She had let her mind escape, and all of a sudden the song had ended, leaving them both with a gust of frozen air between the short half a meter between them. Hiyori's face turned red, but Yato filled his chest, proud, with a huge smile. He was about to say something, when they heard movement on the stairs. Kofuku, Daikoku and Yukine had been there listening. Realizing it, Hiyori felt herself shrinking to floor level, to immediately after feel as walking between the clouds after what Yato said.

"Whaddayathink?"

"I think we are just going to need one audition", stated Daikoku.

Yukine was still showing an attitude as bad as always, but his eyes showed absolute surprise, while Kofuku gave little jumps and clapped.

"What you say, Hiyori?" Asked Yato, "D'ya know the songs?"

After a brief silence, she answered, smiling confidently: "Every word."

But it was actually quite different, once being in the midst of the dynamics she had seen from the outside. During the brief half minute of the intro of one of the most popular SHRINE's, Hiyori started to think she was actually trying to occupy Viina's spot; the one with the exceptional vocal range, the one who could threat of killing you and you would still ask for more; the voice that had been the main treat of the band during all those years. Suddenly she was feeling like a Chihuahua in a San Bernardo event meeting. The first words came out unsure, misplaced and week. Between the harmony created for all three instruments supporting her, she could hear Yato's yell, "Feel it!" The pressure was almost unbearable, and Hiyori closed her eyes, trying to place her voice in some point within the melody. It was way too easy for Yato to say, she thought, because he already had years of experience and knew what was up with all of that.

But suddenly, everything became so simple. The lyrics were about feeling desperate for a love that after trying hard, it never goes back. Hiyori had no idea of how that actually felt, but trying to fill Viina's place was stressful enough to identify the tone the lyrics should have. Yato again made use of a brief silence within the song to yell "Let it flow!" Every piece fell together into place. Again, the song ended too early for her, and that cold rush of air surrounded her again. Daikoku ended making his drums growl chaotically and laughing loudly, with joy, and Yato had again that look, as if he was in front of the biggest diamond in the world.

This time, he wasn't looking at a score.

He was looking at her.

* * *

 _Thank you damnationSUSHItruck, Sucker for shipping, GrumpyCat503 and everyone reading this far despite me being an awful author that takes forever to update. Thank you all the anons leaving comments and reading, I send you all my love. Happy new year!_


	10. Thunderstruck

**TRACK 10**

 **AC/DC – Thunderstruck**

"NO! this is… I'm definitely not accepting this!"

"B-but Tenjin-san! Hiyorin is perfect! Just look at her! – cried Kofuku, whose bright pink tailored suit gave an interesting contrast with the producer's office, minimal, elegant, with black leather chairs.

"I can only see a young schoolgirl who has no idea what to even do with her own life!" Hiyori, sitting in front of his desk, lowered her face, ripped apart. "Iki-san, I thought you were a lot more reasonable for you to gather with this flock of imbeciles!"

"Tenjin-san! How can you even say that? We've taken the company to figure in the pop-rock sales top ten!" begged Kofuku, but immediately her voice shifted to a dry, business-like tone. "I thought you had said you were grateful with us for being able to sell in a market that had been so difficult to this label! You can check your numbers again, if you want to refresh your memory!"

"But my dear," said Tenjin, trying to recover some of his cool, "that was during the time Viina still liked to sing with you guys". Yukine catched movement with the corner of his eye and looked at Yato, who was intently looking at his shoes, brows furrowed, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, awkwardly. "It's not possible, Kofuku-san, for you to think this young lady can take the place of someone like Viina and sing like her! Viina imposed you an energy and an image to the band that only a carefully picked up person will be able to give you back, not a sweet highschooler that evidently seems to avoid getting into trouble and taking her own decisions!"

"Hey, didn't you heard the recording?" replied Daikoku, who put both hands in the shoulders of his partner, showing support. "Kofuku and all of us believe in this change because we heard her and we think it's going to work!"

"Pft!" let out Tenjin, and Hiyori could not be more agree with the old man: she had heard the recording herself and she couldn't believe how was it possible everybody else considered her fit for this. "Her voice is like cotton candy. She's way too sweet for you guys. I'm not going to spend one more yen in a project that there's no profit for."

There was a knocking sound and the head of a beautiful girl with short hair entered through the door.

"Sir? Are you ready for your five-o'-clock appointment?"

"Ah, Mayu! Coming right up!"

Before excusing herself out, the girl and Yato traded stares, and both gave each other a hateful look. Mayu pulled one of her lower eyelids down and showed her tongue.

"Bleeeh! Asshole!" she whispered, before leaving.

Yato made the gesture of going after her but Yukine stopped him with an elbow to his ribs.

"Exgirlfriend?" wondered Hiyori, baffled. Daikoku scoffed.

"Natural born enemies. Yato forgot her name one day, called her "Tomone" for some reason, and since then they can't stand each other. He still calls her like that, just to be annoying."

"Oh…" muttered Hiyori, wondering why she had gotten that defensive.

Tenjin finished picking up his stuff, preparing to leave. Kofuku didn't took the eyes off him.

"I hope you reconsider", she said, unmoved. Tenjin only gave her a stern look and shifted the knot of his necktie, briefcase under the elbow.

"Now listen to me" said Yato, talking for the first time since they had entered the place, "Viina is clearly ancient history, and I know you think our music is good enough to give us a bit of credit and let us pick the singer we think is fine" Tenjin moved and faced Yato. The height difference was minimal, "why did you gave us this ultimatum, then?"

"I thought you would be mature enough to go and solve with her all the stupid stuff you did, not to go search for someone else's life to ruin."

Yato was at his limit, he felt the blood rushing through his fists, and he would have been about to snap and through a punch to that old uptight bastard's cheek, if he hadn't heard the voice of Hiyori raising up, doubtful.

"I ch-chose this myself!"

She had suddenly jolted up. Tenjin stared at her, questioning. Kofuku smiled and sighed.

"Actually they… they heard me and… they think I can do this!"

"Wouldn't you prefer to continue with your normal life? Go out with your friends, enjoy your youth, do normal teenager things?" the producer insisted, fixing his stare on her. "You still have a lot of things to live, and if you do this you probably would never be able to return to your old life."

"…I can do this."

"You will have to face many things you wouldn't normally have to, living the way you did until now."

"I…"

"You will be under the spotlight of thousands, maybe millions of people, and you wouldn't be able to react just the way you feel like."

Hiyori lowered her face again.

"You heard her already, Tenjin. Don't be nasty." Yato warned. Tenjin turned again to him.

"I hope you know how to behave. The next deadline, I want you to give me something I can sell."

Yato came even closer to him, with a defying attitude. Both noses were almost touching.

"I'm going to give you the best damn band of Japan."

"I wish I could believe you, Yato."

Tenjin left, leaving them all feeling the tension prickling on the skin. Kofuku plopped down on a couch next to the window, and Daikoku sat on the armrest, taking Kofuku's little hand between their own.

"Tonight I'm going to need something stronger than a beer", she muttered in dismay.

"Guys, I'm…" began Hiyori. Yato turned around, ceasing to look with rage the door who had just closed.

"We owe you a big one, Hiyori" he spat.

"What?"

"Tell you the truth, I didn't thought you'd talk, much less against Tenjin".

One by one, they thanked her for it, and made her feel part of the band. Yukine stucked his hands on his pockets and turned his face away when he spoke.

"It was fine I guess…"

Hiyori smiled, flushing.

"So, ready for another rehearsal? We can go to my place, it's the nearest…" said Yato. He was living at his basement again, a few days ago.

"Nah, I need to go to Suzuha's…"

"Oh? What is up with you both, little brats?" chimed Kofuku, and Yukine immediately took an awful shade of red.

"W-w-we'rejustrehearsing!"

"Oh, right!" said Daikoku, remembering, "Your school's talent festival is coming up… Don't forget we want tickets!"

"It's actually not that big of a deal…" the kid said, and walked to the door. "See you later tonight."

"C'mon Hiyori, I'll take you home then." Offered Yato.

* * *

The girl wasn't able to understand why Yato didn't simply just left her at the station and left. She was not exactly uncomfortable with the silence imposing when they ran out of stupid subjects to speak about, but she didn't liked to begin asking herself questions that she didn't had any answer for; Yato's past, Yukine's attitude, things of that sorts. She looked at Yato, sitting at her left in the long seat along the wagon's wall. He was using today his blue jersey, but on top of that, the cold had forced him to wear a gray cap and a long jacket. He had his head leant on the window and he seemed to be sleeping. Who was this dude, really?

"I know you have questions. Shoot'em already."

Hiyori was startled and at the same time she flushed. Yato seemed to know all that happened through her mind and showed it at the strangest times. She couldn't just simply remain silent, so she asked what was bugging her more lately.

"Do you really think Yukine hates me that much?" Yato widened his eyes, but didn't moved an inch.

"People change over the years", he began, Hiyori thinking he may have not heard quite well. "I thought Yukine would be one more showing a radical change after going through puberty, but funny enough he has been someone that time seems to not affect". He finally looked at her. "Yuki has a very difficult character himself, and it's way worse when he doesn't know people. But don't worry", he said, when she broke the eye contact to stare at the wagon's floor. "Once you get his trust, you'll realize he's just a big ol' softy".

How to get the trust of someone who was that difficult to get along with?

"He really means a lot to you, right?" Smiled Hiyori, watching the kind expression Yato was using at that moment.

"Well…" he stuttered, "I probably shouldn't let something like this to leak on my end 'cause probs it would be better if he told you himself, but actually Yukine's something like my _padawan_."

"Seriously?" questioned Hiyori, with wide open eyes.

"Why are you so surprised?"

"Well, it's kind of hard to believe you can take care of _yourself_."

" _That_ car coming _my_ way is completely out of this subject!"

"And your feeding habits, your clothing and your sleep schedule can't get you an idea?"

"I pay my rent and I take good care of myself!"

"At some point!"

"What are you implying, _kid_?"

"Why are you calling me kid?!"

"You live with your parents and you're stil on highschool! You can't go around life thinking you can judge a responsible adult!"

" _Responsible_."

The argument, of course, ended with Hiyori slapping on Yato's arm, who laughed trying to hide the fact it really had hurt.

"What you mean with _padawan_?" Said the girl, when they finally got down the train and were walking home. Yato took a lot of time to answer. After long seconds of silence, which he used to ponder his words, he spoke.

"A few years ago, because reasons, we were sheltering ourselves in Daikoku's family business; they've had that for ages. Is a little souvenir store in the outskirts of a park not that far from here, and the store is glued to a house in which we loitered a lot, Viina, Kofuku, and myself. We were just a little older than you." Yato stopped to light a cigarette, and he let out a big cloud of smoke. "A winter day I was arriving there, walking slowly, like the useless piece of garbage I was, and I saw a brat trying to force open the cash register". He smiled to that memory. "Nobody was outside, so he thought it was easy to just jump over the counter and try to force that thing open. He wasn't counting on the fact I would catch him faster you can say rat."

"Was that kid Yukine-kun?" asked Hiyori, concerned.

"Right. I took him inside with an arm bent behind his back and told Daikoku."

"What did you guys did?" Yato took a few steps ahead, stopped in front of her and looked at her dead in the eyes. Hiyori felt a spark going down her spine.

"You should really begin to understand, at this point" Yato said, with a deep, calm voice, "that all of us have our own stories and our reasons to do things. That's why we all had troubles of this sort, big or small" the strength of his words let her freezing. Was he implying that all of them had records? "Yukine was obviously not completely conscious."

"And he was stealing to pay…" cried Hiyori.

"Precisely. He was completely idle, and many years after I wondered how it could be that he showed that dependence degree being so young; but I really didn't knew until he told me, and I want to respect that" he said, continuing his way. Hiyori didn't insist on knowing the background, but waited for Yato to keep talking. "We never called the cops. At first he behaved like an ungrateful brat and several times he tried stealing again and running away, but we never thought about turning him over. I took him living with me to my apartment back then, and I began teaching him music, until the others made me realize having a kid his age sheltered with me without his parents consent could get me into trouble, so I let Kofuku and Daikoku follow a procedure to keep his custody. Now they're the legal tutors and Yukine lives there."

"What about his parents?"

"That's a part of the story you would have to get from him" Yato laughed. "It's really rare when Yukine talks about them."

Hiyori plopped on her bed with a hole in the stomach. Suddenly she realized how much her life was different to everybody else's. Even Yukine seemed to had lived much more time than her at his short age. Much to her dismay, she also realized she was beginning to ask herself if it was okay to keep being around people that clearly had been involved in situations people regularly frowned upon. But overall, she was also able to notice, maybe a little late, what she meant before Yukine's eyes: a spoiled kid, that barely had gotten to show her nose to the world, outside the pink cotton candy setting her mother had laid around her, lovingly. Somehow, she felt she owed Yukine an apology.

* * *

"Hiyori-chan, what happened with the club's thing?"

"Isn't the deadline near?"

"The deadline is next week" answered Hiyori, defeated, while picking up her stuff at the end of school day, during which she constantly remembered what Yato had said about Yukine recently. Her problems right now were the last thing she was worried about.

"And do you already know what you're going to do?" asked Ami, closing her suitcase.

"To be honest, Ami-chan, I have not the slightest idea."

Yama let out a big laugh.

"That's an answer worth of me! Who are you and what did you do to Hiyori?"

Embarrassed, Hiyori put her hand in her forehead. "I've been really out there lately."

"Maybe you just need to relax" figured Yama, who had not made any effort in putting her stuff away, and whose feet were high above the desk.

"Actually, I think relaxing is right now the last thing I need", answered Hiyori, with a light laugh, and excused herself out when the bell rang, running down the hallways up to the main gate.

After a few stations and some streets, she found Yukine's school.

She smiled sincerely with her ticket on hand, remembering the blonde's face when she told him she wanted to buy the entrance to his school's festival. He had been a comical mix of shyness, horror, and not being able to say no.

"Over here, Onee-chan" pointed the girl at the door, after cutting her ticket in two.

"Has the band contest started already?" asked Hiyori, smiling and a bit hurried.

"It starts on a few minutes, the auditorium is over there" the girl indicated a point straight across the main yard.

"Thanks!"

"Ah, Onee-chan!" yelled the girl again, "At the end of the festival we will do a raffle!"

Hiyori waved thanks with her hand and jogged searching for the auditorium. Going through the point the girl had pointed, several food stalls formed a path. Roasted squid, takoyaki, crepes, all of that delicious food popped to her eyes and stole her nose's attention. Making an effort Hiyori continued down the way, and she had made it to the auditorium quicker if a quirky attire hadn't gotten her attention. He was right in front a taiyaki stall.

"Hey, Hiyori! Have'cha tried the food already? It's great! I just love all this junk they sell at festivals…" saying this, Yato put directly in her hand a warm little bread fish, that had an incredible smell. Hiyori looked at him directly in the eye. Yato was taking a vast selection of food between his arms.

"I assume you haven't even looked at the time."

"What're you talking about?" he said, taking his cellphone out of one of his gray wool cardigan's pocket. He looked at the screen. "Oh, shit!"

They both ran to the auditorium's entrance, Yato surprised her arm was so thin he could place his entire hand around it, and Hiyori trying not to drop the taiyaki he gave her.

A big group was waiting outside, in a side entrance. The girl, even from afar, got a hint of the spark of joy Yukine's face got lit with as soon as he saw them running; but it was quickly replaced with nuisance when he saw the ton of food Yato had purchased.

"You really couldn't finish until the show was over?"

"Do you really wanted me to stay still and walk all the way down here on such a path without buying anything? Here, eat a Konnyaku!" Yato practically pushed a big gray squishy konnyaku chunks skewer to Yukine's face, who took a step away.

"N-now stop it you idiot! Where is Daikoku and Kofuku?"

Yato was surprised.

"They're not here yet? 'thought those two were arriving first…"

Yukine's phone began ringing. The boy picked up and after a few minutes of walking around while talking, he looked as down as the beginning.

"Daikoku says something came up with Kofuku at the office and they're not gonna make it… it'll be good if they could be here for a change…"

"THE ODEN STALL IS ABOUT TO OPEN!" announced a teacher in a megaphone, and Yato sprinted towards him.

"Could you even listen up you fucking idiot?!" after yelling, Yukine sighed and turned away, kicking gravel off his way.

"Yukine-kun?" called Hiyori, shyly. The teenager turned to her. "Break a leg!" she said, smiling. Yukine blushed, and looked down to his feet. He nodded, letting out a faint "Hm" and continued walking.

Entering the auditorium, instead of finding a seat, she stood by the door. It would be more convenient to stop Yato right there and tell him a couple of things than try to reach him from amidst the crowd. The lights went off, and the stage of Yukine's middle school lighted with several lights of vivid shades and shapes. The amount of bands at that school only allowed for one song each. After a few numbers, Hiyori could hear the anxiety from the girls around her. On the stage's speakers a voice raised and announced the name of the next band.

"Coming next, the official music club's ensemble: _Snowbell_ *!"

The roar of the girls next to her took Hiyori completely by surprise, until she remembered Yukine was in his usual life an actual celebrity. The hype of schoolgirls seeing him in a different band playing right before their eyes was completely understandable. Hiyori had only met Suzuha a few times herself, and she had though he was a kind and respectful young man. In that moment, she also realized Yukine and him really had a unique type of friendship. Their chemistry flooded the stage, and even surpassed the connection they had with the rest of the band members. Yukine held completely the structure of what Suzuha was doing on the guitar. The singer gave impressive jumps through all the stage and the drummer didn't fell behind keeping the beat of a punk-rock song. Hiyori had her mouth open, impressed.

"They're good, aren't they?" said Yato, standing next to her. "You haven't eaten your taiyaki."

Coming back to the real world with a startled jump, Hiyori bit on her mushy anko filled fish, thoughtful.

"So this is the real Suzuha-kun." She muttered. "They are amazing."

"That's their effort paying up." Explained Yato, proudly. "I almost can't believe this kid is the same brat I met years ago."

"I get you." Said Hiyori, swaying a bit to the beat, side to side. "They're seriously great!"

Inside of the girl's mind, slowly, a resolution so vague that could barely be put to words was beginning to form, but she know real well what was it about. If you could do this in the music club… and they were this good… could she improve?

"Hey, let's go right there!" said Yato, taking her hand.

"But I haven't finished my taiyaki yet!" she replied, trying to ignore the sudden jolt of electricity that went across her starting from the point where their hands were touching.

"Leave that!" he said, tossing it to a near trashcan and dragged her up the front, right in front of the stage. The speakers loudness hit her ribs, the instruments sound slammed against her ears and she wasn't able to even listen to her own thoughts. She looked at Yato, who smiled saying something she couldn't manage to hear, and threw both hands to the air, moving his head. Swimming in the euphoria of the rest of the students, she also let herself go and imitated him. During a few moments she simply danced, forgetting everything, even from herself, and she only made it back to earth when the spark of joy of the boy's amber eyes over the stage seemed to smile at her. The song ended, and Hiyori joined the roar of everybody else, clapping. She was not only clapping to the boys who just won the audience's heart, but also to herself, since she had already found the solution she was so eagerly looking for.

Yukine joined them when the raffle was taking place. The night had already fallen and everybody were joining them at the light of the central yard's stage.

"It's really a shame Kofuku and Daikoku had missed this festival, Yukine-kun." Hiyori praised him when she saw him jogging to them. "You were absolutely amazing."

"T-thanks." He said, sincerely, slipping one finger below his nose.

"Hey, don't get too cocky, you brat." Scoffed Yato. "Here, eat some squid."

"Stop giving me food!"

"One of the winner tickets number is 90839!" Announced the school's headmaster, which was doing the honor of conducting the raffle, officially giving the festival a closure.

Hiyori went pale.

Never, in all her life, she had won something. However, it was completely clear. In her entrance ticket, with red numbers, was printed "90839". Yukine and Yato practically pushed her to the stage, where she waved her hand, shyly, accepting the price from the school's headmaster's hands. Yato's yell was heard in the entire school.

"A CAPYPER!"

"I can't believe you gave your prize to this piece of idiot." Commented Yukine later, seeing her off at the station.

"Well, see it this way: I don't have to carry it all the way down to my house."

"CA-PY-PEEEEER!"

"You're right about that." Said Yukine, doing no effort to conceal the disappointment he was aiming at Yato right then.

"THANKS HIYORIIIIIII!"

"Okay, see you guys later." She answered, trying to ignore the blue eyed boy, hugging a humongous Capyper plush by the neck, crushing it as if he wanted to deflate his lungs from oxygen.

She laughed again when Yukine had to drag Yato through the station by the cardigan's neck.

* * *

"Music?" said the headmaster, almost yelling. He lowered the request form and found an impatient Hiyori smiling, defiant.

"Yes, sensei."

"That's… unusual, Iki-san. I was thinking you might choose a more… academic club, so to speak."

"Sir?"

"Anyways, take this to room 18 on the third floor. The main teacher is on a temporary sick leave but the substitute teacher should be there right now. He's a very talented young man."

The sunset light filtered through the building's windows. Hiyori passed by the board she had looked weeks ago, searching for an answer to the dilemma of what club to pick. The music club flyer was written by hand, in a mature, professional and elegant way. She was almost completely sure this club was not going to be remotely similar to the one at Yukine's school, but she didn't care. Practice was practice, and if she could take her voice to a level in which she could listen to herself in a recording without being embarrassed to death, then she would take any help she could get.

She walked down almost desert hallways until she found room 18, on the third floor. The club's room was strangely silent.

"Excuse me…" she muttered, popping her head inside.

"Ah, so you should be the new girl they were talking about a while ago!" said a youthful voice coming from the bottom of the room. Hiyori entered and turned on a white tungsten light who buzzed uncomfortably. A young guy was sitting behind a violoncello. Skillfully, he began playing it with soft movements of the bow.

"My name's Iki…"

"Iki Hiyori, right?" He looked at her with an interested gaze, without leaving his spot. His brown eyes fixated on hers, keeping the eye contact like a padlock. "I'm the substitute teacher, Fujisaki Kouto."

* * *

 _*SHRINE's name is a joke I enjoyed a lot making, Snowbell is also another joke I thought about mixing both name's kanji, Suzuha and Yukine's._


	11. Evil ways

**Track 11.**

 **Evil Ways – Santana**

The guy looked up, taking his attention out of the glass of cold beer on the noisy bar, in which he was already a familiar face. Being faces and contacts his specialty, he hadn't any problem recognizing the shape of the newcomer… even using a ridiculous outfit to, according to him, pass as inadverted as possible.

"Good night, Yato."

The other man sitted next to him, really close, putting his finger over his mouth and making a loud "SHHHHHHHH", which the first guy, wearing glasses, found really amusing.

"Oh, please, Yato. Half the place knows you're here since you entered. Being inconspicuous is something you don't really pull off well."

Yato froze and then laid back on his seat, looking at him suspiciously.

"You always have to use those big words, Sera."

Sera smiled and gave a big gulp to his beer. Tasting the bitter flavor of the foam, he pulled his eyeglasses up his nose.

"What brings you around here, Yato? Are you looking for another job, like before?"

Yato let out a loud laughter, and Sera eyed him with renewed interest.

"That was ages ago. Now things are different."

"You do look different." Pointed the glasses wearing man. "Did something good happened to you?"

"Is it that obvious?" asked Yato, a bit embarrassed.

"I haven't seen you laughing like that in a long time."

Yato stared at him directly in the eye. He bent his body forwards and let his chin rest on his hands, placing his elbows on the table.

"Sera Kaii," he said, "even you, having the mysterious life you have, in your many businesses you should've had ups n' downs."

Sera could barely hear him on top of the pub's noise. He finished his beer.

"It sounds like you have good news." Sera said, trying to hide the curiosity in his voice. "Want a cigarette?"

* * *

Once outside, Yato lit up his tobacco cylinder slowly, while Sera looked at him impatiently. It had began to snow.

"So? What's all this mistery about?"

"Have you ever" Yato began, taking his time to speak, "had the impression that you run up to something that simply changes… everything?"

The other guy looked at him over his eyeglasses, not so sure about what he was meaning.

"Well, you are privileged, you can change whatever you want in the minute you want." Sera pointed, bitterly.

"That's not entirely true, but I imagine you're talking about the double life you have."

"What do you know about that?" behind his chill appearance, Yato noticed his friend shifted his weight, unconfortable.

"I only know you have bet on things you shouldn't before." Yato pointed to the bar behind them with his chin. "And you still doin' it. You have a really solid support. I'm sure you have a good job."

Sera let out an eloquent laugh. "You're an extremely interesting person, Yato. It seems sometimes you're completely oblivious to the world, and sometimes it seems you're amazingly perceptive." Yato scoffed. "What the hell did you found that made you change so much?"

"A singer. She's fantastic."

"To your standard, she should be really good."

"She's technically on diapers, but she has a huge potential."

"Did you take in a rookie?" the voice of the guy with glasses bounced back from the wall in front of them. "Did you lost your mi – Oh."

Yato looked at him in confusion, while Sera gave him a stern look.

"I see. That actually explains a lot."

Yato reddened to the tip of his ears.

"Whatever you're implying, you're wrong. She's actually exceptional."

"But you have your doubts about her." Sera pointed him with the cigarette butt between his fingers, before throwing it away. "You wouldn't be telling me anything if you were completely sure."

"I'm only thinkin' if I should make some changes." Said Yato. He took a few steps away, and turning his back on him, he continued. "We're rehearsing at the label's house. Call me whenever you're available."

"Sure do."

Yato left, leaving fresh black tracks on the thin snow layer on the ground.

Sera sighed, curling his lips upwards. That smile turned into a thin small line when he felt the cellphone ringing in his pocket.

"Iki speaking."

* * *

Iki Takamasa hung the hall speaker down, and sat at the table along his wife and daughter, who gave him an inquisitive stare.

"Masaomi will miss dinner again." He said, in a serious tone.

Iki Sayuri, an elegant lady who still had traces of her youthful beauty clinging to her face, let out a strained sigh.

"He works way too much. I will ask for his share to be saved for him to eat something at the hospital tomorrow."

Hiyori was not surprised by this scene anymore. Lately it seemed like her impressions were being abruptly melted down one by one. She had noticed they were not the same family as before. His father looked tired all the time and everytime he had to relax, he fell asleep. Her mom was beginning to show traces of stress on her face and a hidden tobacco addiction around her mouth. Masaomi was never home, and she had spent most her teenage hours studying. It was hard not recognizing the people you sit with around the table every night.

"You're quiet today, honey," her dad told her, "not hungry?"

Hiyori flinched. She had been staring at her plate during the last couple of minutes. Shyly, she began to eat.

"Maybe she doesn't know how to tell you the news, dear." Pointed Sayuri, with a suggestive voice. Takamasa froze right there in the middle of cutting his hamburger steak.

"What news, Hiyori?"

"Uhm…" she doubted. Right when she was beginning to talk, her mother cut her abruptly.

"She chose the music club at school."

Hiyori closed her mouth softly, looking at the flower vase on the table.

"Music?" repeated her father, thoughtful. "Well, congratulations, dear. It's not exactly a family tradition or something the Iki's are particularly skilled on, but I'm sure you will do your best." After a brief pause, he continued. "So? What instrument you chose? Flute? Clarinet? Violin?"

"They picked me up for the choir. I'm a soprano."

"That is wonderful, sweetie." Her dad got up from the table abruptly, answering his cellphone. "Iki speaking."

"Oh, dear!"

* * *

"I refuse to keep talking to you through email like a caveman! Come to my house before rehearsal."

Hiyori sighed, closed his e-mail session and turned off the centenarian computer on her school library. Through those weeks, his email had been cluttered with a million messages left by Yato (sometimes at very inadequate hours past midnight), some with a clear topic, but most of them were actually about any random stupid thought coming through his mind at the moment. Hiyori was beginning to think he was mistaking her email account with a notebook of dumb ideas. She made what she could to answer, but sometimes she could not manage more than writing two or three things full speed in her school's computer. Of course, her father had a last generation laptop in his study, but Hiyori had never dared to touch his things. Libraries came really useful to write down papers and in case any emergency came up, she could count with Ami or Yama to lend her theirs. Yato and his urge to let her know even the link to that commercial that had made him uncomfortable in the morning was turning her world upside down.

Hiyori made it until the main door of the building with her school bag in hand, but turning to one of the hallways, she heard a voice calling her stubbornly.

"Hiyori-chan!"

When she turned back, Fujisaki Kouto reached at her.

"Sensei! Is something wrong?"

"Sensei? I might be the substitute teacher, Hiyori-chan, but I'm actually just a few years older than you." He blinked an eye at her, and Hiyori let out a small laugh, not finding any other appropriate reaction. "The music academy has its perks. You can call me Kouto-kun."

"I… actually don't think that's really appropriate… sensei."

"Ow, c'mon!" Fujisaki insisted. "Don't be that serious. In fact I have something to show you, come with me."

The guy took her by the arm with a powerful grip, a surprise for someone with his complexion, and he practically dragged her to the music room. Hiyori followed, nervous, expecting to brush him off quickly to make it on time to Yato's apartment before the rehearsal with the band.

Once in the music room, Fujisaki took his baton, and pointed an empty chair. Hiyori sat on the edge of it, uncomfortable. The teacher turned his back on her and scrambled around the handful of papers piled neatly over his desk. Hiyori got one of the pamphlets.

"La nuit" she read, a little lost.

"This is part of the repertoire we'll go over next week." Fujisaki leaned closer to her, and fixed his eyes really close, with his hands on his knees to be at her eyesight level. The necktie dangled forward in a very sloppy way. "Your voice is simply perfect for this solo."

Hiyori skimmed over the score. "I have never sang something this difficult before."

"This is for begginers, Hiyori-chan!" With an exaggerated gesture, Fujisaki raised both hands to the ceiling, and turned around to lean tragically over his desk. "Leave your stuff, we will begin right away."

"B-but!" she began complaining.

"Or could it be that you have plans? Oh, don't worry, I understand your personal life is more important than being responsible with your projects!"

Hiyori sighed and stood up. She didn't move an inch. Fujisaki smiled and attacked the piano immediately.

"You enter right after the phrase with G, A…"

* * *

Every tick of the clock hand generated waves on the clear surface of his mind, like drops of water in a full basin, growing closer to knock over. With his chin over his laced up fingers, he listened every second and every minute passing, how many hours he had been sitting there? Every muscle on his body was unsure of working properly together with the rest, and when Yato finally used them to look at the time in the kitchen clock, they screeched in a peculiar way. He looked at the device furiously, as if it carried the guilt of being this late; then he took his jacket and stormed to the door. Before going out, he looked at the package laying on top of the coffee table, on a paper bag with handles. Exasperated, he returned for it and then he went through the door like a demon.

Walking with big strides through the street, he almost runs over Hiyori, who was running to his basement. Not long after they understood they were each other, they began talking at the same time.

"That's precisely why one should get a cellphone! I can't believe you simply can't have any civilized way of letting anyone know you're running this late! You could have never made it and I would be there waiting for you like a fucking idiot!"

"I'm so sorry! I actually wasn't planning on taking that long and I had the intention of running to your place as soon as the classes ended but my teacher found me and insisted we should practice! I told you I'm sorry! Are you even listening to me?!"

They both sighed when the silence raised. Yato took one hand to his neck.

"Look, it doesn't matter anymore. Let's just hurry."

Hiyori nodded and walked with her head low behind him all the time until they made it to the station. At the platform, Yato tried to engage with the normal small-talk.

"So they accepted your request for choir?"

Hiyori nodded again.

"The teacher is really strange."

"Bet he is." Pointed Yato in a distracted tone. After an uncomfortable silence, he went straight to the point. "I told a friend of mine to come whenever he has the chance to listen us." He felt Hiyori tensing next to him. "He's a nice guy, I've been trusting him from a while now. His specialty is moving contacts. He likes to invest his time and money in difficult projects."

"He supported you guys?" asked Hiyori, shyly.

"Thanks to him we met that nasty Tenjin geezer."

Another silence ensued.

"When will he come?" she finally asked.

"Dunno. He's a busy man." Yato muttered. "I want him to check up on you. I actually think we should adjust some stuff about our style, to make your voice pop up." He took one hand to his chin. "And I fully trust Sera's opinion."

"Sera-san?"

"That's obviously not a real name. He introduces himself as Sera Kaii."

"What kind of name is that?"

"That's a stage name! you really don't think we are going to introduce our singer as Iki Hiyori, do you?"

"...But that's actually my name."

"No way! We will have to think of another name for you."

"I still don't get the point of that."

"What about Anpangirl?"

"WHAT?!"

"It's actually a cute name, everybody likes Anpanman…"

The conversation flowed on that same note during the rest of the trip. Getting down, they tried to make it to their friends house as fast as possible.

"You're late!" growled Daikoku, all the way from the kitchen.

"What are we waiting for, then?" said Yato mischievously, getting close to the basement stairs. One by one they began to enter the basement studio for another rehearsal.

"Whatever it is you're doing, musically speaking, Hiyori-chan, you better drop it right away. It will end up getting in the way for the choirs matters." Had said Fujisaki earlier. And he had added: "You really should not get together with that kind of losers."

It had been an oddly specific comment. Looking at Yato's back moving instruments and connecting things, commenting options with Yukine and Daikoku, she realized how mistaken her teacher was.

They were the reason she had come to him at the first place.

That night, she sang with a confidence she had never felt before.

* * *

"You sound tired."

Hiyori jumped when Yato came from behind, sitting halfway on the bench's back watching Kofuku's garden.

"I just had a long day, that's all."

"Hmmm…" muttered the guy, searching around in his pockets. A paper bag dangled on his wrist. Hiyori interrupted him when he was about to spin the lighter's wheel.

"The choir teacher is giving me private training." The man looked at her, surprised.

"That idiot with the baton and everything?"

"He's the orchestra director, Yato."

"All those guys are just assholes." He snapped, mockful, and finished lighting his cigarette. Another oddly specific comment, Hiyori thought, and looked at her gloved hands in her lap.

Yato looked at her briefly and jumped over the bench like a cat, sitting next to her, staring. Surprised, Hiyori watched him stutter, even when the previous movement had been precise and agile.

"Listen… Hiyori…" she didn't liked to admit the nervousness of the guy made her hear beat really fast. "I want to give you something."

Saying this, he deattached the paper bag from his wrist, and offered it to her with both his arms extended up the front.

"I didn't wrapped it or anything; it's actually not a big deal, I don't want you to think weird stuff." Yato looked at the floor, and Hiyori surprised herself thinking how strikingly handsome he looked with his flushed cheeks, the scarf on his neck, puffs of steam coming from his mouth, with his hair up in a ponytail and offering him a strange bag that, actually, didn't looked like it was light. The girl took the package and began opening with caution. It was thrill this she felt receiving a gift directly from him?

She froze when she opened the cardboard box and picked up the brand new smartphone carefully.

"Yato…"

"As I was telling you, don't make anything weird out of this!" Yato spluttered, "It's really annoying having to contact you through e-mail with no certainty that you read an important message or not!"

"But…"

"But nothing! Take it, it's yours."

Hiyori's teeth began hurting due to the cold air outside, having her mouth open, completely surprised. It seemed like all her ability to speak had just left her right there.

"If you don't want it I can turn it back…" he muttered, after a few moments of uncomfortable silence. Hiyori came up abruptly from her dizziness.

"I'm so thankful for this!" She got up and made a bow in front of Yato, who waved his hands exaggeratedly, trying to avoid Hiyori took it too seriously.

"I only want you to have it in case we need to call you immediately, that way we won't need to wait until you can confirm if you're coming or not."

"I promise I'll pay you!"

"Tha' FUCK are you talking about?!"

"These things are not cheap!"

"Okay, now, let me tell you something." Yato went dead serious quite abruptly, and got up to get closer to her. Hiyori took half a step back. "If you really want to do something for me" he looked at her directly in the eye, deeply, "promise me you'll always sing for us."

She had a really hard time trying to undo the knot in her throat before speaking. "I will."

Inside, Kofuku stepped off one of the windows silently, with a dainty smile covering her face.

"It was just a matter of time, Yatty." She whispered, and continued her way down the hallway.

* * *

It was not hard to convince her friends that the phone had been purchased with her savings, and they gladly shared with her their favorite pictures, apps and cellphone numbers. It was a little bit more difficult to get the strange look off his father's face when Hiyori showed a little bit more interest in technology that they thought. However, Yato, the reason behind that phone in particular, was beginning to get on her nerve.

Without any warning, at completely inconsistent times, Hiyori would get text messages from him, just as at her email before. This guy didn't cared at all if it was 2 o'clock in the morning and she had a text the next day. She had ended up silencing her phone whenever she was at school, and she had finally came to turn it off during the night.

"Maybe I would answer more gladly if you weren't harassing me every single hour!", she had written one morning that Yato's endless messages had reached her phone after turning it on. The last one had been a "):" at 4 in the morning. She later apologized to Yato on the rehearsal that afternoon, but she pressed over the fact she had still tests coming up midterm and asked him to moderate the amount of texts he sent. Yukine found really funny Yato finally had someone else apart from him to pester on.

At his basement, Yato opened the door to shelter himself from the strong snow that began falling just after that days reunion, and he pulled out his cellphone from his pocket to ask Hiyori if she thought it was true ants didn't sleep, before thinking twice and placing it on top of the coffee table, with his interest now over a yellow envelope someone had slid under the door.

Inside, he found a simple printed paper. The only phrase in it, just in the middle, on a really small font, read "Missed me?". Yato felt a stone down his stomach and wrinkled down the envelope and paper with all his strength, throwing it with rage on the kitchen's trashcan. It took a long time before he could actually manage to normalize his breathing and heartbeat.

Hiyori was walking alone the last blocks from the station to her house. In spite of being a relatively safe area, something about today made her feel watched over. For some reason the dark or shady parts made her walk faster and look behind her shoulder.

The vibration in her skirt's pocket scared her and she almost yelped, reacting just in time to take the machine out and see on the screen that an unknow number was trying to communicate with her.

Hiyori slid the green button to the right.

"Iki speaking."

"Hiyori-chaaaaaaan!" said a sugary voice, filled with danger.

 _Hi everyone! I just wanted to let you know of a quick update. Right after posting this episode a lengthy comment about religion was posted on the first chapter and I'm beyond confused. I don't know who this person is and I don't see any blocking option on their profile. I was also checking on other fanfics and no one else has it._

 _Please stay sharp and if you see it again report it, I understand everyone is free of believing in anything they want but I don't think fanfiction dot net is any place of spreading any cult. Let's keep this a safe environment for everyone._

 _I love you all!_


	12. Jaded

**TRACK 12**

 **Aerosmith - Jaded**

"Fujisaki-sensei! This is a surprise! What can I do for you?" asked Hiyori, trying to recover from the initial surprise and recover her composure.

"There you go again with the sensei thing!" he replied, giving an overdramatic sigh. "Tell me, when are you going to start warming up to me? I told you before, I'm only a couple years older than you!"

"But… you're my teacher." She said, hesitating. "Talking to you any other way would be inappropriate."

"We will become closer, Hiyori-chan, I can assure you that". Something in his voice made Hiyori especially upset to be called like that, but she couldn't explain why. "By the way, that friend of yours, Yamashita, she's very kind, she gave me your phone number right away."

"Oh, I see". Hiyori made a mental note about talking to her the next day. "Did something happened? What can I help you with?"

"Nothing to be worried about, sweetheart". The girl swallowed the impulse of hanging up on him right then. "I just wanted to inform you that you turned out chosen to be the main soloist of the choir". "Picked by whom?", she thought, concerned, but opted not to say anything for now. Upon the silence, Fujisaki insisted again. "The cat ate your tongue? Are you not happy?"

"I was just wondering if you could not wait until tomorrow to tell me about this, ¿is this really that urgent to ask my friends for my phone number?". Hiyori realized too late the tone she had used was definitely not appropriate to talk to a teacher. The worst thing about it was that Fujisaki's reaction wasn't even strange to her. He just laughed hard.

"You're absolutely right, Hiyori-chan, you're a very clever girl!" and he added, with a different set of voice: "I actually wanted to say good night."

"Oh… I… see?" she doubted. What was all this? "Good night?" she finally suggested. Fujisaki laughed intently again.

"Good night, honey! I hope this phone call gave you a nice thought to fall asleep to."

He hung up. What was all that about? Trying to follow her way, Hiyori felt a shiver down her spine only for daring to think maybe a teacher – what an abominable idea, was flirting with her over the phone. Of course, Fujisaki was not exactly the least handsome man on earth, in fact, Hiyori could see clearly the face Yama made when the music teacher approached to ask for her number and the reason why she had given it without any second thought, but something in him was just simply… too weird. There was something about his features…

Hiyori flinched when she passed by a street light. Just in the middle of the circle displayed by the lightbulb, there was a girl dressed in a kimono, standing still at that time of night, without signals of anybody around or that she was waiting for someone. She was just there, looking straight up front. Hiyori passed next to her and flinched again when her intense black eyes fixated upon her. There was no expression, not even a glare. Hiyori hurried and tried to get out from her mind the ghostly figure of that pale girl, with black short hair, looking at her with eyes like that, black as hollow, expressionless.

She could never forget that face in her entire life.

* * *

"In what moment in life exactly you thought it was a good idea to give my cell phone number to Fujisaki-sensei, Yama-chan?" Hiyori asked to her friend the next day, without second thoughts.

Yama opened her sports bag from school and stuck her head right into it.

"I'm so sorry, Hiyori-chan! I wasn't thinking at that moment!" even her voice was ridden with how embarrassed she was. Hiyori couldn't help but feel a big affection for her friend and smiled.

"It's okay, Yama-chan, don't overthink it. I just think is weird to receive calls from a teacher straight to my phone."

"He called you?" asked Ami, quite interested, and Hiyori nodded.

"Yesterday."

"Why such a hurry?" Ami asked again.

"Well…" Hiyori doubted. Clenching her fists over her skirt, she told them the teacher's decision. "Apparently, they chose me as the main soloist of the choir."

"Wow, Hiyori-chan", said Yama, sticking her head out from her bag. "Since when you're so good in music?"

"Yeah, I mean since we know each other you're barely more than a mess in everything else that doesn't involve studying until your lashes burn", laughed Ami.

Hiyori felt a bit disappointed if she had to be completely honest.

"I'm just as surprised as you guys. I can't stop asking myself who chose me for this."

* * *

Apparently, judging by the looks of the other choir members expecting to be picked up, no one except Fujisaki had chosen her for the position. Just to get a second opinion about someone that knew a bit about the subject, Hiyori invited Ami and Yama to stay and watch the choir's practice after school.

The mood was pure tension.

It was way more uncomfortable when the choir mates realized the special treatment Hiyori received from the teacher. Every time she noticed a new innuendo the man directed at her, the same ugly feeling crept up her back. Fujisaki stared at her deeply in the eye, with a half-smile in his face, while directing everyone. Both his hands in the air, he had complete control over them all, with an iron glove, but he didn't take his eyes off her. It almost seemed as if he was directing her exclusively. All tension accumulated during that hour and a half of practice passed the toll over her when she came out of the classroom, relieved. Her friends received her, but the reaction was way too different to what she expected.

"I definitely want to know when did you became this skilled singing, Hiyori-chan", asked a confused Yama.

"When did you find time to practice?" tried Ami.

"I sing in the bathtub, don't be so dramatic." The girl answered, a bit alarmed. "Actually I don't think I'm even half good as I would need to be considered a good singer…"

A loud alarm interrupted her. Her smartphone had activated a reminder telling her she should run to the station if she wanted to make it on time with SHRINE. These schedules were becoming pretty hard.

Hiyori excused herself out and ran. She ignored the heavy stare she felt upon her back while crossing the main yard.

"Run as fast as you'd like, rabbit." Muttered Fujisaki, from the music classroom window. "I already have you in my sight."

He pointed his fingers at her, making the shape of a gun with them, and with a sinister smile, he turned around.

* * *

At SHRINE's house, the normal volume of conversation was being exceeded. Hiyori entered trying to be discreet and to understand what was being said above the big voice of Daikoku. He was, apparently, scolding Yato. Hiyori knew why the moment she went through the living room's door.

She had never seen Yato in such a shape. He didn't just look drunk, he looked terribly tired. Hiyori wondered if that was the normal effect of having too much alcohol or if he really hadn't slept all night.

"You were the last person he saw", said a voice behind her. Startled, she turned around to find Yukine there, watching the scene. He then stared at her, concerned. "Did something happened to you guys?"

"Something?" Hiyori was completely lost. "Like what?"

Yukine sighed.

"Sometimes he… well, _this_ happens. I don't know exactly what is the trigger, but he's more paranoid than usual, he doesn't sleep, and tries to get away himself by drinking. He says he drinks to try and find some peaceful sleep and he has spans of really bad insomnia." Hiyori looked at Yato. "I think there's something else behind this."

"Last night I didn't notice anything weird, at least not until we split. He did the rest of the way alone."

"NOW PUT THAT SHIT DOWN!" Shouted Yukine, seeing Yato trying to open a new can of beer.

"Noooo!" he cried when the boy took the remaining cans to the kitchen. "You don't understand!" just as if he had a sixth sense, Yato looked at the door and grinned widely, standing on his feet tottering. "Hiyori's-'ere!" to her surprise, Yato threw a limp arm around her neck. "Time to begin' d'practis'". The smell of alcohol and his doughy tongue didn't make things easier for the girl, that the only thing she could fully think of was how close they really were, the warmth radiating from Yato's body, and his smell – he was too close.

"G-get off me!" Hiyori slipped under Yato's arm and made her way alone to the basement. Yato followed her with the eyes, perplexed until she disappeared through the door. Daikoku came close to him.

"That was really smooth."

Yato opened his mouth to complain, horrified, but no sound came out of him.

Hiyori realized, alone in the silent basement, between the controls and all the gear, that her knees were shaking, her shoulders were heavy and her heart pounded violently between her ribs. Was it the fact that she had actually never been that close to someone in such ethylic state, or simply…?

Everyone else entered the practice room with the usual noisy vibe. When Hiyori turned to look at Yato, he averted his eyes quickly to the floor, blushing.

"Wha…" passed across Hiyori's mind, but she rather replaced her thoughts with the warm-up exercises she had learned on the choir practice.

Once everyone was ready, Yato let out a loud distorted chord and let it ring. His hand was up in the air, and after the sound disappeared a bit, the intense sound of the guitar got feedback from the amp and let out a hoarse howl. Hiyori usually limited herself to concentrate and cover her part. Something this night though made all her senses excited and waited intently for Yato to begin playing. He then lowered his arm and made a movement with his head, and suddenly, uncomfortable, Fujisaki popped to her mind.

Her mind began working like crazy. The replacement teacher, wrapped in a brown suit, the shirt well tucked-in, with a tie; Yato was using a muscle t-shirt one size too big for him under his coat. Fujisaki had a rather thin frame, and the few times he worked with his sleeves rolled up, his skin didn't show any spot, not a single mole; Yato had a muscular build that was not immediately evident through his everyday clothes, but one simple look to the man behind the guitar directing this band was enough to convince that under that shaggy look was the true brain that made SHRINE work, every muscle of his arm embellished by some tint, some figure, some kind of mark. Hiyori entered in the right moment with the correct notes, going with the flow, entranced. She had no idea why she was comparing both guys, but the shiver down her spine remembering the teacher directing the choir was noticeable enough: she didn't like Fujisaki at all. Yato, however… where should she put Yato?

Dumb Yato. Annoying Yato. Smelly, irresponsible and careless Yato. Talented, mysterious and irresistible Yato. Kind Yato. Unpredictable Yato. Handsome Yato.

The voice part of the song ended, and Hiyori analyzed the tips of her toes, barely touching the heavy microphone stand's base, with wide open eyes. What the hell was she thinking about?

* * *

"Hey, Hiyorin, is everything ok?" Asked Kofuku when the practice was over, "You seem worried about something."

The girl only could manage a short "Uhm…" while swiftly gazing with the corner of her eye at the guy picking up every cable he could find out of place. The muscle t-shirt let the movement of his arms and his back to shine through. Hiyori averted her eyes right away and tried to suppress the sudden heat on her cheeks and that annoying feeling of a claw clenching her stomach. Kofuku smiled sweetly.

"Oh, I see." Said merrily the pink-haired girl. "I heard about the phone." She suggested, slyly.

"Well… that's…"

"Good luck, you idiots". Jumping childishly, she got out of the room.

"What were you guys talking about?"

That blue.

It was not just any color, it was that one in particular, precisely the one she could not stand to look in that moment.

"Oh, just…" Hiyori hesitated. Yato seemed to have lost the alcohol effects by that point, but he still had droopy eyes and huge dark circles. "Kofuku-san only wanted to know if we could exchange numbers."

She smiled nervously at Yato's inspection. Her smile vanished the moment a new idea began to form, and the man realized her change of expression, stepping back when she raised her hands to her mouth in panic.

"Hiyori…?" Yato tried.

"I completely forgot!" the surprise made her stutter. She had forgotten to call all the event planners and hotels that may rent a hall for her. "What the hell am I supposed to do know?"

"Hey, chill," said Yato. "What's wrong?"

Hiyori was worrying more and more by each passing second. How could she have forgotten about it? She hurriedly let out an apology and ran to the door, picking her stuff up in her way out. Before she could storm by the basement's stairs, Yato got a firm grip off her arm.

"Are we not a team, Hiyori?", he said, and added with an affected tone: "Don't you trust us?"

Hiyori stopped the overflow of ideas that knocked over all other thoughts inside her mind. She slowly turned her face to Yato. She had no idea her actions were able to affect him this much. He looked at the floor, worried, not daring to raise his eyes, and his eyebrows furrowed. The girl sighed.

"I completely forgot I had to plan my parent's wedding anniversary party. I have a few weeks ahead and I haven't even made the research."

Yato let her arm loose and turned around to search into his coat's pockets. He took his smartphone and plopped into a chair. Hiyori smiled, a bit hurt, seeing he had completely lost interest so quickly. She was beginning to walk when she heard Yato speaking.

"Ishida-san? Good evening! I'm sorry to be bothering you at this time! I'm Yato, you remember me?" he began walking aimlessly across the room. Kofuku came back with snacks and placed them carefully over an amplifier while Daikoku and the others followed Yato around with the eyes. "Thank you! I'm fine… actually, I was calling to ask you for a big favor. Do you still have that big hall we fixed up last summer?"

Bit by bit Hiyori's face was turning from confusion to surprise, to total joy. After a few phone calls, Yato had appointments at different points all around the city, and every person he spoke to were glad to show him places right away.

"T-that's amazing, Yato!" Hiyori stuttered, puzzled. "How did you do it?"

Yato wasn't sure if he should be proud or ashamed of the circumstances.

"I've had this bunch of jobs…" he muttered, raising a hand to the nape of his neck.

"That's not a lie," pointed Yukine, "he has had more jobs than birthdays."

Hiyori could not believe it.

"I thank you so much, Yato!" she watched as the boy fiddled dorkly with his nose before jumping back to his phone. After a few seconds, he stared at his other three friends.

"We're not done yet. Are you still in touch with that restaurant owner in Odaiba, Daikoku? The guy way-too-into fusion food?"

"Ah…" said Daikoku, thoughtful. "I haven't talked to him in a while, but I'll get in touch right away."

"Cool! Yuki!" the boy raised his nose from his bass and stared back reluctantly, "Kofuku's family has a big storage vault full of furniture, make some time tomorrow, we need to select what we will be using."

"I get to be the carrier?" he whined, "I still want to grow taller, you ass!"

"This sounds like fun!" Kofuku squealed. She actually didn't have any idea of where she had put the key to the vault, but she would surely find it somehow.

"Thank you all so much, guys." Said an overwhelmed Hiyori. "Actually when you already have so many things under control, I don't think I need to do anything." She laughed a bit, ashamed. Yato pointed at her with his phone.

"Your job is the most difficult one!" he put a hand in his waist, extending the other one towards her. "You'll have to coordinate everything and don't let us slack off."

Hiyori laughed again, harder this time.

"Leave it to me!"

* * *

Yukine popped his neck while walking during sunset through one of the parks nearby Yato's basement. The furniture was ready, Hiyori was better than she thought for coordination, especially after having a more precise idea of what she was trying to accomplish. Yato walked by Yukine's side while making their way to the basement, where Yukine wanted to check thoroughly one of the parts he should play on a new song.

Yato looked straight ahead, undoubtful, firmly, and with a slight smile curving the corners of his lips. Curious about the silence, Yukine stared at him intently.

"You've been weird lately." He began. "Are you sure tha-?"

"Everything is okay?" Yato interrupted, "of course. Now everything is okay."

After another brief analysis, Yukine bent his arms behind his head, locking his fingers together, and sighed.

"Does this have anything to do with Hiyori?"

Yato could barely manage to keep his balance.

"THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT, YOU BRAT?" Trying to give a smack to the kid's head, he barely hits a trashcan.

"We'll help you set this up; We're a team" Yukine mocked, "Since when you're so into getting up and do things? I think if you really try you can be a little more obvious, moron."

Yato rubbed his knee, but looked up at the sky, thinking.

"Are you trying to say that…" He stopped and tried to avoid blushing "I like Hiyori?"

"No." Said Yukine, simply, and began walking again. Intrigued, Yato ran after him. "I think you are deeply, stupidly and totally in love with her."

"Sure." Yato scorned, pretending his young friend's words hadn't made his heart jump.

"You can try to lie to me if you want." The blond suggested.

"And what could you know about those things, midget?"

Yukine avoided his eyes and blushed strongly.

"Shut up."

Yato stopped in his tracks again. Yukine did the same, even though he was not sure what was going on.

"Go to my house, I'll meet you there." Said the older boy, giving his keys to the blond kid.

"WHAAT?" Snapped Yukine, trying to read the look in Yato's eyes. They were cold, steel hard blue, and his jaw clenched, almost making it possible to hear his teeth screeching. Yukine tried to follow his eyesight, but couldn't spot anyone. There was a girl further ahead drinking water from a drinker a few meters ahead, but that was it.

"You're definitely a freak, now what the f-?"

"I told you to go! I'll catch you later."

Yukine went ahead, surprised by the roughness of Yato's words, not without turning around to look at him suspiciously.

Yato was finally alone in the park. Strangely alone. A cold breeze went through his jersey and the wool sweater he put over it, but he was sure it had nothing to do with the temperature.

It seemed all the cold air was coming from the eyes of the short-haired girl coming closer to him, after closing the drinker's tap.

"I'm so glad to see you," she began talking, with a sweet voice, "Yato."

He clenched his jaw even more. Something about the way she spelled his name sent shivers down his spine.

"What are you doing here, Nora?"

"Isn't that obvious?" said the girl, and took Yato softly by the arm. "I come to take you."

"Not this time."

"You've become harsh, Yato."

"I'm not going to be available every time he needs. I have a life of my own."

"With them?" asked Nora softly, tilting her head, and then looking to the path Yukine had gone by. "That's impossible. You know the only ones who truly love you is us, Yato."

Again with that, Yato thought and ripped his arm off Nora's soft grip.

"You can tell that nasty geezer I'm never going back."

The long silence made him look back to her. Her black junior high uniform gave her an air of innocence Yato knew very well couldn't suit her better. Nora smiled, holding her briefcase with both hands. She was the stereotypical image of a japanese dream girl.

"Father will get mad if I come back without you."

"I'm sorry about that."

"You're not sorry enough, Yato." Nora slowly began to walk away. "Not yet."

Something in her words made all the alarms in Yato's mind ring.

"See you later, brother."


End file.
